Star Fox Rose Petals: The Dark Mirror Chronicles
by James R. O'Neill
Summary: A Star Fox fic that takes place in an alternate reality. Krystal/Kursed returns to Lylat after 6 years, bent on revenge against Star Wolf. Rated M for many reasons, which are inside.
1. Aftermath

**Whew, Okay. This story is not my usual romance story. This takes place in an alternate universe from Rose Petals, but follows that storyline up to a point. This also takes place 9 years after Rose Petals. So it'll have SPOILERS!!!! BUT THIS IS NOT THE SAME STORY!!!! The main Character is Krystal/Kursed BUT it is NOT the Kursed we know and hate! I hope you enjoy this Tragic Romance Story! BE PREPARED TO CRY!!!!**

**WARNING!: Contains Torture, Sexual Content, Possible Rape, Foul Language, Tragic KrystalxFox Romance, **

**BUT NO CHARACTER DEATH!!! (This must be distinctly understood, or nothing good will come of the story I'm going to relate!)**

**P.S. Check out the back story page I will be posting up later, for more info on this universe.**

**Reassurance: THIS IS A KRYSTALXFOX FIC!!!!! DON'T BE FOOLED!!!!! EVEN WHEN TIMES ARE TOUGH KEEP READING!!!! I PROMISE IT'LL BE WORTH IT!!!!**

Prolouge: Birth of Kursed

_Krystal McCloud's Arwing bucked as another charged pulse connected with her top right G-diffuser. Performing yet another somersault to shake off her pursuer, Krystal fired her fully powered laser cannons. The blue beams of spit fire made her opponents Wolfen buck for a moment, but were quickly deflected by the craft's red G-Diffuser shielding, made visible as the advanced fighter rolled away in a U-Turn. Krystal's Arwing bucked again as one of the Wolfen's wing mates came to assist. Krystal swore loudly and produced her own barrel roll, dulling the damage to her shields, but not deflecting it. The Wolfen III's firepower was significantly better than her Arwing II's shields. _

"_Fox! I can't shake these guys!" Krystal shouted into her headset's microphone. "I need help here!" _

"_Get in line!" Falco's voice came over the comm. Despite the avian's apparent frustration, Krystal could feel a kind of enjoyment as Falco dueled Leon Powalski above the blue vixen's head. "Aaaahh! Damn lizard! Hold still and let me shoot you!" _

_Hehehehehe... At last, a real test for my new ship!" Leon's voiced cackled. "What's the matter Falco? Losing your edge?"_

"_Shut up!" Falco's frustration was evolving into full-blown fury. Falco pulled a spectacular tuck and roll maneuver, catching Leon's ship full in the underbelly. With a short screech Leon rolled away from Falco's Arwing._

"_Annoying bird! I'll teach you to respect the great Leon!" Falling back a safe distance, Leon let loose a barrage of charged pulses, the special ability of Rainbow Delta II. Krystal, while weaving and rolling to avoid the incoming fire from her own pursuer, used her peripherals to inspect Falco's shield gauge. It began steadily falling in large chunks, until finally with a bloodcurdling squawk, it disappeared completely and Falco's ship plummeted smoking to Katina's rocky surface._

"_Falco! No!" Slippy's voice cried over the comm. Tears streamed down the young toad's face as smoke covered his friend's ship. "You'll pay for that!" Slippy pulled his ship into a tight somersault clipping the wing of Panther's Wolfen, The Black Rose II. The enraged amphibian flew straight at Leon, guns blazing away in a vain attempt at revenge._

"_Slippy! No! Don't—!" Krystal warned desperately._

_Leon cackled again and rolled aside letting Slippy's ship by harmlessly. No sooner had it cleared the area than a bright blue beam soared by, catching Slippy on the left wing, vaporizing 2 G-diffusers. With a wail, Slippy's ship joined Falco's on the ground. _

"_Panther!" Leon said angrily over the comm. Annoyed that he had been deprived of his kill._

"_Sorry Leon." Purred Panther Caroso's voice. "But the runt was my prey."_

"_Slippy!" cried Amanda. The yellow haired frog began veering off in an attempt at retribution for her husband. Lucy Hare's ship pulled around to stop her._

"_Don't be stupid! That's just what they want us to do!" The two junior members of Star Fox had driven away Krystal's pursuer, but were now under fire themselves. Lucy's ship was already badly damaged, and Amanda's shields were almost gone as well._

"_We can't hold out against them forever! Their ships are too powerful!" Krystal said as she moved to assist. "Hold on girls, I'm coming!" She began pouring laser fire into the back end of the pursuing Wolfen, but it wasn't having much effect. _

"_C'mon little girl! Is that the best you got?" Pigma Dengar's voice guffawed. "Man, Star Fox sure has gone down the tubes since I was a member!"_

"_Shut up, you vile swine!" Krystal yelled channeling her husband's hatred towards Pigma. She was pouring all her Arwing's energy into the cannons, trying to shoot down her father-in-law's betrayer. Her lasers finally began diminishing the Wolfen's shields at a faster pace, but Pigma still had enough to be cocky. Guffawing loudly he rolled his ship to deflect the steady blue stream of laser fire from the vixen's assault._

"_I'm bored. Guess I gotta shoot ya down now. Sorry." That comment that sent chills up Krystal's spine. Sensing his intentions she screamed at her friends to watch out. But it was too late, Pigma gave a deep throated laugh and released a Smart Bomb. Krystal watched in horror as the two women's Arwings caught fire and began breaking apart in the bombs wake._

"_Noooo!!! Amanda! Lucy!" Krystal sobbed as her friends ships hit the ground. It was too much to bear! She had lived and worked with these people for years! And now she was watching as everything she loved was torn to shreds by the laser fire of Star Wolf! It was Cerinia all over again! Krystal's eyes filled with tears of sorrow and rage. "You bastard!" She screamed and rushed after Pigma's fleeing exhaust trail. "I'm going to kill you!" _

"_Worry about your own fortune, sexy!" Came Regi Temptress Teera's voice over the comm. Suddenly, Krystal's ship was hit by a charge pulse from behind. Teera's Wolfen was again behind her. _

"_Panther is right with you, my sweet." Panther's voice purred at Teera._

_Teera rolled her eyes. "Don't call me that! I've only got eyes for the ladies!"_

"_It is one of your many pleasures that makes you even more appealing!" Panther responded undeterred._

"_Whatever."_

_Krystal was having difficulty keeping her breakfast down. She couldn't understand why she should! The G-diffusers were functioning properly! Nausea shouldn't have been an issue. Nevertheless, Krystal found herself covered in half digested bacon and eggs with coffee. She cursed but couldn't give the mess any attention, the enemy's Wolfens were closing in, and her shields were becoming harder to sustain. Her telepathy was failing her as she was distracted by the nausea, and as a result is was becoming harder to avoid Star Wolf's attacks. Her mind was racked with grief at the loss of her friends._

"_First Katt, then Falco and Slippy, and finally Lucy and Amanda." Krystal ticked them off in her head. All her closest friends were dead!_

_Suddenly, Fox's voice interrupted her thoughts. "Krystal!" Fox's Arwing sent a Smart bomb at Teera and Panther's ships and they broke off pursuit to avoid it. Fox maneuvered his ship so that he was flying next to his wife._

"_Fox!" cried Krystal relieved. "I was so worried! I thought you might have been—!"_

"_Krystal, listen to me!" Fox cut her off in a desperate tone of voice. "You have to run! Get out of here! I'll hold them off to give you some time, but I can only delay them a minute or so! Use that time to get away, is that clear!" Krystal hope turned to despair. She shook her head disbelievingly._

"_No! No, you're asking me to abandon you! I won't do that, Fox! You're my husband! I love you!"_

"_We don't have time for this!" Fox's voice was commanding but Krystal sensed the desperate plea in his tone. "Just go before they're all after us!"_

"_Fox! I won't leave you!" Krystal shrieked pleadingly. "You can't ask me to—!"_

"_Fox is right!" Came a familiar voice over the comm. Krystal looked up to see 4 first generation Arwings descended to form up with the two foxes._

"_Red?" Krystal and Fox said disbelievingly. The young Pokemon Trainer nodded from the cockpit of his Arwing, adjusting his hat._

"_In the flesh! We're here to give you guys a hand!"_

"_You didn't think we'd let you do this alone, did you?" Balthier's voice said in his sauve Archadian accent. "I wouldn't be much of a leading man if I didn't help a damsel in distress."_

"_Balthier and I will help distract Star Wolf while you get away." Roxas explained._

"_And me and Red are gonna escort ya." Axel's grinned cockily._

"_Don't worry, Fox!" Red assured the vulpine. "We'll get Krystal to safety!"_

"_Thanks guys!" Fox thanked Star Vixen and began breaking formation._

"_Fox! You can't—!" _

"_Good-bye Krystal! I love you!" Fox said as he, Balthier, and Roxas disappeared beneath the clouds, and out of sight._

"Fox! Noooo!" Krystal screamed as she jolted up in bed. Sweat clung to her matted blue fur, and her bloodshot jade eyes were wide. Breathing heavily she looked down to her right. The bed was empty, of course. That spot had been empty for 6 years. Krystal's eyes looked down at her left hand. Two rings, one silver and one gold, stared dully back at her. Krystal's eyes filled with tears.

Hiding her face in her hands, she began to sob uncontrollably. It had been 6 years, but Krystal still dreamed about that day. The day her life ended.

Chapter 1: Aftermath

Krystal's eyes were raw from crying. The dream always had that effect on her. She went to the shuttle's kitchen sink, and retrieved a coffee pot from beneath it. Filling the pot with water, she began to brew some coffee. It was something she did mechanically. Over the years she had awoke countless times from bad dreams, so it had become a habit to make a pot of coffee, not wanting to risk sleeping for fear the dream might come again.

As she waited for the liquid to perk, she reflected on the days following Fox's death. She had, of course, returned with Star Vixen to Corneria. It was while she was there giving her report that she'd been stricken with nausea and vomited on the briefing room floor. She had passed out and been taken to a hospital. It was there that she had learned what would have been the happiest news of her life, if Fox had been alive to share it. After 3 years of marriage, Krystal was pregnant with Fox's son. Peppy had been the one to tell her, trying to be supportive and soften the blow. However, all the joy that could have been Krystal's at this news, was replaced by sorrow, the likes of which she had never experienced. Even the 2 years of separation were nothing compared to this!

For 10 months she'd led a retired life, waiting for the birth of the only piece of her husband she had left. With Andross's new army on the march, things had become heated as Corneria struggled vainly to keep his forces at bay. Sadly, without Star Fox to back them up, Corneria's ships were defeated time and time again. Not even with the help of Star Vixen. The team of inter-dimensional mercenaries fought valiantly, but in the end the inexperience of its pilots became their undoing. One by one, each was turned back into a trophy and was captured by Venom forces.

Star Wolf had made quite a name for itself. They swooped in out of nowhere, clearing the way for Venom's forces and receiving a large sum of money for their efforts. It made Krystal surge with hate and fury. They had gained so much from Krystal's loss! She hated them! Loathed them! They would pay for destroying her life one day!

Then came the day that Venom was on Corneria's doorstep. Millions of fighters had descended like locusts on a promising crop, leveling the cities, while Star Wolf decimated the Cornerian Defense Fleet. Peppy as a final act of selflessness, put Krystal and her newborn baby on his personal escape ship, and sent them off into the far reaches of space.

Krystal had fled the Lylat system with her son, Marcus and never looked back. For 5 years she'd lived in a distant system, the guilt, hate, and sorrow threatening to overwhelm her. All the love she could muster was directed at her son, telling him stories of happier times, of a happier Lylat, and especially of his father. Krystal didn't want Fox to disappear from her memory. By telling Marcus about him it seemed to her he was still alive.

During those years of isolation, Krystal had not been idol. She would have her revenge on Star Wolf. She trained herself, honing her skills for the day that she returned to Lylat. She acquired a fighter of alien design, and equipped it the best she could with her limited resources.

She became proficient at listening in on conversations, and gathered information on Lylat from the space pirates that frequented a bar on the planet she lived on. She learned that Andross was supreme ruler of the Lylat system. He ruled from Venom with an iron fist, crushing any insurgents that rose to defy him. Corneria, no longer the lush farm world of Krystal's memories, had become a penal colony for Venom's trouble makers, and resembled what Venom once had been in past years. It was covered in brutal prisons and work camps, and was a feared punishment among Venom malcontents. The Star Fox logo was considered illegal calligraphy, and any one caught drawing it was sent to prison.

Star Wolf was one of the most feared mercenary groups in Lylat. Each of its members had a substantial following of gangs behind it, and its military strength was rumored to be quite large. It was rumored that they operated out of Sargasso. Krystal intended to get even with them. No matter what the cost, they would pay for everything they had done.

On the sixth anniversary of Fox's death, Krystal's ship reentered Lylat space. It had been a little unnerving to be back, but Krystal had barely felt anything. Her revenge was all that mattered. She decided the best course of action was to make all haste to Venom. Even if it was the enemy stronghold, it was still the most populated planet. It was said to be a beautiful place to live, which was surprising since Andross had ruined so many planets with his experiments, yet Venom remained untouched.

Once there, Krystal would get an apartment under her assumed name, Kursed, and obtained the currency that would keep her family from starving and fund her schemes. Then, when she had saved enough, she would go after Star Wolf. The only problem was that she had no idea where she was. Her nav computer had been knocked out by a meteor shower on her approach to the system. She was flying blind.

Krystal was brought out of her reverie by the entrance of her 6 year old son, Marcus. He stared up at his mother with sleepy eyes. "Mommy, are you allwight?" Krystal rubbed the tears out of her eyes and sniffed loudly. Walking over, she picked up her son, hugging him close to her. He was the spitting image of his father, except for the blue fur. He talked in a childish Cerinian accent, like his mother, and was also telepathic. "I felt you crying," Marcus explained.

"It's nothing, sweetheart." Krystal assured her son, starting to walk back to his room.

"Were you thinking about Daddy?" Marcus asked.

Krystal nodded. "I had another dream about him," she admitted wearily. "But it's nothing that should worry you. Go back to sleep."

"Mommy, why do you always dream about Daddy?" Krystal felt tears welling up in her eyes, but she blinked them away.

"I– I just loved him very, very much. It's hard not having him around." She sniffed. "I miss him."

"I miss him, too." Marcus tried to console his mother. Krystal chuckled sadly, laying Marcus back down on his bed.

"I'm sorry you never got a chance...." Her voice trailed off. She swallowed back a sob and continued thickly. ".... to know him. He would've loved you just as much as I do." It was becoming hard to keep the tears back. Marcus's eyes were filling with tears as well. His mother's emotional overflow was becoming to much for him to bear. He began to sob into Krystal's chest.

Krystal too, began to sob and held Marcus closer to her. Together the two McClouds mourned their departed father and husband.

Later that day, Krystal was serving breakfast to a starving Marcus. They had fallen asleep in Marcus's bed, and had awakened to growling stomachs. Marcus gobbled down his blueberry pancakes and bacon, while Krystal sipped the coffee she'd neglected during the night. They were both feeling much better.

Krystal was pondering how she would get to Venom. She could just keep flying until she saw a planet, then stop and have her nav computer repaired. Of course, that could backfire a million different ways. She had already attempted a patch, but her resources were limited and the patch was second hand at best. Of course, it helped her tremendously. She was now quite sure that she was close to Katina. How close she couldn't say, but at least she had a general idea now.

"Mommy?" Marcus said as he sucked down his orange juice. Krystal looked up.

"Hmm? What is it sweetie?"

"You and Daddy used to live here, right?" Krystal nodded.

"In this system, yes."

"Where'd you meet again?" Krystal sensed what he wanted. He wanted a story.

"On a planet called Sauria."

"Dinosaur Planet?" Krystal chuckled at the old name.

"Yep."

"How'd you meet again?" Krystal looked over at him with a sly smile. She desired to humor him though and she launched into the tale of Fox's heroic rescue.

"And then, your father released the last Krazoa spirit, and they all started to spin around me!" She had become quite the story teller over the years, and she knew how to stimulate her son's imagination. "They glowed blue and purple, and they started to go inside me! Your father shouted 'What's going on? You said this would save her!' He was terrified that they were actually going to kill me and then he'd never get to tell me how beautiful he thought I was!" Krystal was laying it on a bit thick, but her son ate it up.

"And then all of a sudden, they all flew out of me into the big head on top of the palace! And it started to float. He called out to me, told me to wake up, and I did. The crystal holding me up exploded and I felt myself falling! But just as I was about to fall through the hole under me, your father extended my staff and caught me on it!" A nostalgic look crossed Krystal's face as she relived that moment. "He offered me his hand, and I looked up into his face. And right then my heart skipped a beat because I knew that I loved him!"

"Wow...." Marcus said in awe, still too young to comprehend what that really meant. "And he loved you?"

"Oh yes," Krystal laughed. "I felt that he loved me just as much."

"And that's when you went to live on his ship?"

"Yep. And together we had a lot of adventures!"

"When was I born?"

Krystal's eyes became a little darker. "About 7 years or so after that."

Marcus sensed his mother's discomfort and decided to drop that particular subject.

"Tell me about you're honeymoon." Marcus asked. "That's one of my favorites!"

"Krystal sighed and chuckled at her sons curiosity. "Okay."

For the next half-hour, she related the tale of their honeymoon on Sauria. When she finished Marcus was feeling confused on one point. "That was a good story, Mommy, but I don't understand something."

"What's that sweetie?"

"Why'd you and Daddy take so many naps?" Krystal laughed and turned beet red.

"That's something I'll tell you when you're older." Marcus was about to protest when suddenly an alarm sounded throughout the ship. Red emergency lights flashed and a electronic voice said "Warning! Warning! Unknown Vessel Approaching To Starboard Aft!"

Marcus squealed and covered his ears. Krystal's danger sense pricked and she picked up the kit and ran with him to his room. "Marcus! You stay here and don't unlock the door for anyone! Do you understand?" Marcus nodded. "If you are captured how do you talk?"

"Like this?" Marcus said in a make-shift Cornerian accent.

"Good. And what's your last name?"

Marcus shrugged and asked "What's a last name?"

"Atta boy. And what's my name?"

"Kursed." He flinched as he said the name. Marcus hated using his mother's alias. It made her sound evil. "And I don't know my daddy's name. He died before I was born."

"Excellent. Now be safe! I love you!" Krystal gave her son a squeeze and rushed out into the corridor. Taking a last look at Marcus, she blew him a kiss and locked the door. Rushing back to the cockpit, she slid into the pilot's seat and brought up a data readout on the ship.

It was a Dreadnought-class vessel, painted red, and it reassembled very closely _Great Fox_'s _I _and_ III, _though it was much larger than either ship. The markings on the dorsal wing and the transponder code made Krystal's heart sink. A cold fear and hot fury burned and froze her insides. The name of the ship was _The Great Wolf._

Star Wolf had found her. Krystal could barely move. Why? Why did it have to be Star Wolf? She hadn't planned to meet them for months! Certainly not with her 5 year old son on board! It was true, she was cursed. Star Wolf had taken away everything from her! Her home, her friends, her husband! Now they were going to take away the only piece of her old life she had left! Her son!

Krystal shook off the despair that was gripping her. This was no time to go to pieces! She had to keep strong or else she'd never make it out of this alive! The comm beeped just then, and Krystal composed herself. Putting on her best sinister face, she accepted the link to enemy ship's comm. The old holo-screen buzzed to life. A large dog with brown fur appeared in front of her.

"Unidentified craft," he said in an electronic buzz. "What do you think you're doing? You're on Star Wolf's turf!"

"Oh, I'm sorry," Krystal began in a improvised Cornerian accent adding a hint of seduction to her voice. "I didn't know! My nav computer got knocked out a few days ago! I'll leave immediately!" The dog glared at her from the holgram.

"Your signal's terrible! Don't you ever go to a mechanic? Anyway that's not the point! Your on Star Wolf's turf! Do you know what we do to creeps who barge in on our turf?"

"It can't be worse than your people skills!" Krystal shot back. The dog's face turned red and his face began to contort.

"You little bitch! How dare you talk to me that way? Don't you know who you're talking to?

"Ike Mansex? Venom's newest porn star?" Krystal was enjoying beating the crap out of this grunts ego and watching his face turn puce.

"What? Oh, you'll pay for that one! I'm gonna blow that piece of crap shuttle to bits! Then we'll see who's laughing!"

"All I see is a worthless mutt, barking at a fox, while his master's not looking!" Krystal poured as much spite into her tone as she could. For several minutes she heckled the furious grunt, who became madder and madder. She figured if she could get the dog mad enough, the argument would be so loud, eventually someone would come over to shut him up. Then she could be on her way. Her plan worked, but not how she expected it to.

"Put it on the main viewer," a deep voice purred loudly in the background. Krystal's insides shrank, she knew that voice all to well. The view changed and the upper deck of the _Great_ _Wolf_'s bridge appeared. Krystal managed to keep her face straight as the entire Star Wolf Team stared coldly back at her. The eyes of Wolf O'Donnell, Leon Powalski, Panther Caroso, Regi Teera, Pigma Dengar, and Andrew Oikonny met hers.

Panther whistled loudly. "Wow! She's beautiful!" Panther put a black-furred paw to his chin and stroked it thoughtfully. "I haven't seen a vixen that beautiful since McCloud's girl. What was her name again?" Krystal laughed inwardly. It was ironic that after all his desperate attempts to win her heart, he couldn't even remember her name.

"Krystal." Teera reminded her teammate. "Her name was Krystal."

"Ah, of course!" Panther's eyes lit up with recognition. "The lovely Krystal! Never to be forgotten!" He turned his attention back to "the lovely Krystal" and continued. "Of course, she couldn't hold a candle to you, my dear!" Panther stepped forward and bowed chivalrously. "Forgive me. Where are my manners? Allow me to introduce myself. I am Panther Caroso. Pleased to make your acquai—"

"Enough of this!" Oikonny cried stepping forward and pointing at the view screen. "This little tramp has trespassed on our territory! We should make an example of her and vaporize her ship!"

"Pipe down!" Wolf told the younger pilot who looked indignantly at his team leader. Wolf wasn't paying attention; however, his eyes were fixed on Krystal. Krystal felt her insides squirm as Wolf looked her over appraisingly. The way he looked at her....Did he recognize her? He couldn't, could he? Her appearance had changed subtlely over the past 6 years. Her hair was much longer, her fur was a dark storm blue instead of the rich sapphire that it had been, she'd dyed it to make sure. And she was older. How could Wolf possibly recognize her?

Wolf took a moment longer to think than asked, "What's your name, missy?"

"Kursed."

"Interesting name. You talk like you came from Corneria, your ship seems to confirm that. What's your occupation?"

"I'm a bounty hunter." Wolf's eye narrowed slightly.

"If you're here to collect the bounty on our heads, you're a little late. That hunt was called off a long time ago."

"I'm not here on a job." Krystal said contemptuously. "I'm lost. I was sent after a mark in the Kew System. On my way back, my nav computer was knocked out by a meteor shower. I didn't know I was this close to Sargasso. I'm returning to Venom to collect my reward."

"Who was your mark?" The question startled Krystal. This was a trick question and she knew it. Wolf was trying to determine wether or not she was lying. He also probably had the mark list on record, if not memorized.

"Son of a wealthy merchant." Wolf smiled evilly.

"There's no such job! We have the very latest list of all hunts currently up for grabs! And I've never heard of any hunter named "Kursed" before!"

Thinking quickly, Krystal spoke. "It was a private hunt from one of my frequent clients." She growled softly. Wolf sneered.

"Alright, who is this client of yours?" Krystal smiled nastily.

"Rule #1 for bounty hunters: Never reveal who hired you."

Wolf clapped his hands together a few times. "Bravo, I didn't think you'd know that one."

"Can we stop playing games?" Krystal sighed impatiently. "I'm a very busy woman."

"Just one more if you don't mind?" Wolf's voice was mysteriously charming. He raised his hands in front of his face. "Do this."

Krystal frowned and tried to figure out Wolf's angle. "Why?" She asked cautiously.

"Oh, no reason." Wolf said innocently. "I just want to avail myself on one point. As soon as I'm satisfied you may leave."

Krystal, still unsure of Wolf's intentions did as he asked, throwing her palms up towards the screen. "Good enough?" She asked impatiently.

"That's fine. You can put your hands down now." The vixen lowered her hands and looked Wolf in the face. The lupine was smirking up at her.

"Now, what was the purpose of that?" She asked.

Wolf kept smirking. "I needed confirmation. Thank you, Ms. Kursed. Your cooperation has been most appreciated." The older lupine turned to Leon and whispered something in his ear.

Leon squinted up at Krystal's fuzzy image. After a second, a long smile spread over his face. The lizard and wolf walked out of the bridges double doors. On his way out, Wolf leaned in to whisper something in Teera's ear. The red vixen nodded and approached the view screen.

"Ms. Kursed, Lord O'Donnell has ordered your immediate surrender." Krystal's heart sank in fear and she glared at Teera.

"What?"

"Come about and prepare to be boarded. If you resist your ship will be destroyed. If you launch any escape pods, your ship will be destroyed."

The link shut down and Krystal's mind worked feverishly to make sense of it. Wolf _had _recognized her, she knew it! How though? And why had he asked her to hold up her hands? It was a totally illogical.... A terrifying thought crossed Krystal's mind. Raising her palms to her face she examined them closely. Her eyes shot open as a glitter of silver glinted on her left hand. Turning that hand over, she made a horrifying discovery. She had forgotten to remove her rings!

"Idiot!" She cursed herself. "Of course he recognized the rings! Why didn't you take them off! Damn you!" Krystal knew she had no time to beat herself up. There was a transport full of angry thugs on their way to capture her, possibly kill her. Remembering her self-imposed training, Krystal quickly dashed out of the cockpit towards the armory. She would need to be prepared if she was to defend herself and her son.

Krystal laid the last of her sensor bombs under the deck plating of the corridor leading to Marcus's room. Similar charges had been set throughout the ship at areas a boarding party would take first. The charges were powerful enough to punch into the enemy, but not so much that they could create a hull breach. Krystal replaced the plate and retreated back through Marcus's now open bedroom door, stopping as she did so to make sure the reflector was attached sufficiently to the blast door. Satisfied it wasn't going to fall off, she blasted the control panel and entered the room where she had stockpiled her weapons. Closing the doors to the room, Krystal locked it tight and moved behind the makeshift barricade. She had overturned the young vulpine's bed and dresser, pressing the former against the wall to act as a shooting cover, and the latter into the corner, where Marcus would hide while his mother fought. It was a common practice among vixens, to hide their young from predators while the mother distracted them.

Picking her son up, Krystal carried him over to the dresser and hoisted over the edge into the small space behind it. "Stay there, Marcus." She ordered him sternly. "When the fighting starts, don't make a sound." Marcus nodded, sensing his mother's fear and seriousness.

"What's going on, Mommy?" the 5-year old's jade eyes looked into Krystal's.

"Some very bad men are coming here to take me away from you." Krystal explained. "But I'm not going to let them, I promise." she reassured him. "Here, take this." Krystal handed Marcus a pistol. "If anyone but me comes to get you, aim for their head and pull the trigger."

Marcus took the weapon in his tiny hands with awe. He nodded his assent though. "I love you, Marcus! Be brave!" Krystal felt the ship rock as another shuttle docked with her own. She crouched down behind the bed and reached for a pair of blaster pistols. She closed her eyes and used her telepathy to spy on the boarders. They moved in disorganized pairs through the shuttle. Knocking over furniture, yelling and screaming. It didn't take long for a mine to be set off. There was a loud boom and the shuttle shook as the one she'd hid in the kitchen exploded in the face of several grunts. Multiple explosions started going off as startled thugs tripped onto mine after mine. The shaking was nothing she couldn't handle, but with every new explosion the enemy was getting wiser. Wolf and Leon had both come personally, and they began taking command of the panicking troops.

"_Watch where you step!"_ Wolf shouted at a pair of grunts who were about to step onto a mine.

"_She certainly not taking any chances is she?"_ Leon mused. Wolf nodded.

"_There's a method to this though. She's set the most charges down that corridor." Wolf pointed._

"_She's certainly bent on not being taken alive." Leon chuckled fingering his blaster. "She must love her life." Wolf shook his head._

"_No. Something about her manner says she hates her life. Anyone from Corneria must hate their life. Since the invasion I mean. No, she's protecting something. My bet would be a kid. No vixen's going to save her own hide when she's got a kid to raise."_

_Leon sniffed. "Hmm.... You may be right. There are two scents."_

"_Let's go." Wolf leaped over the mine field with incredible ease. "That's one patch," The lupine said removing a can of what looked like yellow spray paint. He misted the area so it turned yellow and leaped over another patch, repeating the process. Leon began following as did the rest of the boarding party, using Wolf's trail as a guideline to proceed. Krystal began feeling nervous. They were penetrating her defenses far faster than she'd anticipated. _

_Wolf finally stopped in front of Marcus's door. He looked at the busted panel on the wall and spat. Being careful to avoid the center of the door, Wolf knelt down next to the charred panel and began fiddling with the wiring. Leon came up and stood behind him taking the same care not to get too close to the blast door. The grunts however didn't. The charged into the small area, blasters charged to their maximum energy output and opened fire at the door. Without warning the Reflector activated and the red energy pulses soared back at the startled grunts who fell before their own onslaught._

_Wolf spat again and reached over to grab the reflector off the door. "Blue shield." he mused sticking it in his pocket. "Haven't seen one of those in a while."_

"_Guess you were right then." Leon chuckled. "This is one "special" vixen."_

_Wolf finally gave up on the busted panel and turned to the remaining grunts. "Well, what are you fools waiting for? Shoot it down. Obediently the drones began charging their blasters. The red glow illuminating the walls around the area._

Krystal took a deep breath and braced herself. From the other side of the door, Krystal heard someone yell, "Fire!" The blast door gave a tremendous lurch and it bent inwards. Another minute passed and again the yell of "Fire!" sounded, this time a little louder. For the third time the order came again, and this time the door buckled. Grunts began trying to enter the room, but Krystal was ready for them. She stood up and began firing. Grunts dropped before the angry vixen's onslaught. She was acting on instinct alone, firing, crouching, reloading, and firing again.

The cycle continued for several minutes. Grunt after grunt came through the door, and fell to the floor in a pool of blood. Suddenly, a bright blue laser beam flew towards Krystal's chest. She dropped low to avoid it, which gave Wolf the opening he needed. He darted into the room, reflector outstretched, deflecting Krystal's shots back at her. Unable to fire, Krystal backed up against the dresser, growling menacingly up at Wolf, showing him her snow white fangs , her jade green eyes full of hate.

Wolf looked right back at her, smirking at the instinctual reaction. "Well, well. Looks like we caught ourselves a real feisty one!" Leon appeared behind Wolf smiling wickedly.

"Quite a beauty at that, too! Panther and Teera will be pleased." Wolf chuckled. Bending down, he took the snarling vixen by the front of her shirt and handed her off to Leon, who in turn handed her to two grunts who whistled and held her tight. Despite her drive and constant wiggling and snarling, the grunts still managed to hold her down while Wolf peered behind the dresser. He pulled his head back just in time to avoid a green laser that flew up where his head had just been. A little shaken, he called to the young fox behind the dresser.

"Hey! Kid behind the dresser! Hand me the pistol and no one gets hurt, you hear me?"

"Don't listen to him, Marcus!" Krystal ordered her son. "He'll only kill you, too!" Her two body guards hit her with the butts of their guns.

"Hand me the gun and your mother and you both live!"

"He doesn't mean it!"

"I give you my word you won't be harmed if you hand me the gun."

"His word doesn't mean squat!" Krystal snarled as the two guards hit her again. "You know who these men are! You know what they did to us!" Again the guards hit her.

"Let me put it this way," Wolf said pulling out his blaster and pointing it at Krystal. "If you don't hand me the gun, I'll kill your mother and then you. So what's it gonna be?"

There was a minute of silence as Marcus struggled with the decision. At last, the pistol flew through the air and into Wolf's hand. "Good choice." Wolf growled and overturned a the dresser. Marcus cowered in fear behind it, whimpering.

As Krystal screeched imploringly at Wolf to let her son go, the lupine scooped up the young pup and held him under his arm.

"Please Wolf!" Krystal was half hysteric with sorrow and panic as the lupine held her son up to inspect him. "Marcus is all I have left! Please let him go!" Wolf ignored her and continued his inspection. A smile curved around his lips. "Looks exactly like his father." He turned his attention back to the grunts. "Take her to the shuttle and handcuff her. When we get back put her in the brig, a few hours away from her pup is enough to make any vixen willing to do whatever you want her to. Put her in the cell with our other "guest." She'll be glad of the company."

The grunts laughed and began dragging Krystal kicking and screaming back towards the shuttle.

In the brig of the _Great Wolf_, Krystal was thrown sobbing into a cell, the force field around the bars zapped into place. The guards walked away chuckling at the huddled blue mass on the floor. She shuddered half crazy with worry. Where had taken Marcus? Was Wolf going to kill him? Why had he done this in the first place? The hate she tried to conjure to relieve her suffering, dissipated against the pressure of worry that had opened up inside her. It was like losing Fox all over again.

"Hey stranger, why so down?" Came a weak voice from the corner. Krystal sat up, her eyes trying to focus on the dark mass in the corner. She had forgotten this cell was occupied. Tears welled up in her eyes, and she lay back down on the floor, too worried to care if someone was there.

"Leave me alone! Touch me and I'll snap your neck!" The stranger chuckled from the corner and began dragging himself toward her.

"Guess your not very sociable, huh? Fair enough. May I at least enquire as to the lovely lady's name?" Krystal didn't answer. The stranger edged closer. "C'mon, I don't bite. Unless you're one of those Star Wolf punks!"

"It's Kursed!" She spat. The stranger chuckled again.

"Kursed, huh? Cool name. So what did they get you for, Kursed?"

"I was in their territory." Krystal explained unemotionally.

"Aren't we all?"

"Plus that scum O'Donnell has something against my husband's family. He took my kit and threw me in here."

"Oh. No wonder you're so mopey."

"What about you?"

"Me? There's a price on my head. Star Wolf's been after me for nigh-on 5 years now." The stranger mused.

"What'd you do that was so bad?" Krystal asked genuinely curious. She was becoming cheered by the stranger's non-chalant attitude.

"My team and I cause a lot of problems for the Great Emperor Andross. Perhaps you've heard of us? Star Falco?"

Krystal's ears perked up and she looked at the stranger. He was an tall blue feathered avian. His expression was cocky and his face was beaten and bruised.

"Star what?" She asked disbelievingly.

"Falco. Star Falco. That's me by the way! I'm the famous pilot Falco Lombardi!"

With a cry of joy Krystal pounced on her friend, who squawked loudly.

"Oh Falco! I thought you were dead! It's so good to see you!" She hugged the avian tightly abandoning all pretense of a Cornerian accent.

Falco looked confused and started to ask, "Do I know you?" but then something dawned on him and an amazed look over took his face. "There's only one vixen I know who talks that way!" Falco peered uncertainly at the vixen for a moment then asked, "Krystal? Krystal McCloud?"

"In the flesh, Falco!" Falco gave a joyful squawk and hugged Krystal laughing in relieved tones. Krystal hugged him back, tears of joy running down both friends faces.

"You beautiful Fox charmer! We thought you were dead! I never dreamed in a million years I'd ever see you again! How the hell have you been? Bill told me you had a kid! He must be Fox's clone with blue fur, right?"

"It's good to see you again Falco!" Krystal had so many questions for her former wigmate but she decided it would have to wait till later, as she sensed she was going to literally faint from joy. "Would you excuse me for just one second?" Krystal lost conscious in Falco's arms.

**Please leave a review!**


	2. Captured

**Next Chapter here. Enjoy and leave a review.**

Chapter 2: Captured

"So how'd you get captured?" Krystal asked Falco. It felt strange to be talking to someone who she thought had been dead for 6 years. She was glad though that her friend was indeed alive, and that it had not just been another dream. She'd had too many of those.

"Ah, I let myself get caught." Falco shrugged. Krystal gave the avian a quizzical look.

"What? I don't understand, Falco. Why would you let yourself be captured. Falco took a quick look out into the corridor before answering, lowering his voice to a mutter.

"You know that old adage: "Keep your friends close, and your enemies closer? Well, that's what I do. Star Falco has people on the inside of Wolf's operation." Falco did another look around to make sure they weren't being overheard. "A few weeks ago, one of our contacts on Sargasso didn't make a scheduled report. We got to thinking that they'd discovered the leak, and we sent someone in after our informant." Falco's eyes dropped to the floor. A forlorn expression touched his face. "She never came back."

Krystal felt for Falco. Losing a teammate was always hard, even for the toughest of mercenaries. "I'm sorry."

Falco shook his head. "Thanks, but I wouldn't write her off just yet."

Krystal gave Falco a enquiring stare. "Write who off?"

Falco paused for a moment. He sighed then answered, "Katt."

"Katt?" Krystal couldn't believe her ears. 2 friends back from the dead in one day? "She's alive? But she was the first of us to go down! I thought for sure she was dead!"

"Who? Katt? Nah. She's tougher than that!" Falco chuckled a little. "She was the one who got me out of my fighter that day!" Falco's emotions fluctuated oddly as his mind remembered that day. "We had to lay low for a while on Katina. Until things settled down, ya know? Then we stole some fighters and made for Corneria, Of course, when we got there it was crawling with Venom's troops."

"Venom troops? That was at least 10 months after our battle with Star Wolf! I had time to go through an entire pregnancy, and childbirth, and an entire month after that!"

Falco raised his hands defensively. "Hey, Hey! We had a really rough time just avoiding patrols on Katina! I can't help it was so heavily manned!" Krystal took a deep breath to cool down. She had let her anger get the better of her.

"Sorry. I'm just a little upset that even though you were alive you couldn't help out." Falco nodded sympathetically.

"I understand. I was really steamed about it myself." The avian scratched his head a little ashamedly. "I flew off the handle a couple of times. Sometimes I wonder how Katt ever put up with me." Again at the mention of her name, Falco's emotions did an odd twist. Krystal was confused. The emotions she was sensing were oddly akin to Fox's feelings for her. Her mouth parted and she gave her friend an amazed stare.

"Falco? Are you in love with Katt?" Falco's face reddened and he began to stutter sheepishly. "Well– pht– uh— I...well...it's not really a– a–uh–a secret...anymore." Krystal saw him enclose his left hand in his right.

"Anymore?" Krystal amazement became full blown astonishment as she let out a small cry. "You got married, didn't you?" Falco's face became even redder and he began to deny it, but eventually he gave a defeated look and held up his left hand. A thick gold band enclosed his ring finger. Krystal let out a joyful laugh and hugged Falco around his neck. "Oh, Falco that's wonderful! When? I want to know everything!"

Falco gave her an annoyed look, than gave an exasperated sigh. "It was very quietly done on Aquas. It was about 2 years after you left."

"I thought you didn't like the idea of being tied down?" Krystal teased. Falco gave a shrug.

"Well, losing everything you cared about tends to reorganize your priorities."

"I'm happy for you. Any kids?"

Falco snorted amusedly. "Hell no! Things are way to hellish right now for us to even consider kids!"

Krystal shrugged. "I understand. Trying to start a family with so much going on does seem rather silly." Krystal felt a wave of sorrow touch her heart. 6 years ago, she'd have given her left arm to hear she was pregnant. Ironic that when she got her wish, it felt like the worse possible news.

"Well, I suppose I can't make fun. You had to go through all that alone. And so soon after..." Falco let his voice trail off, not wanting to upset his vixen friend. "I never got to say this before, but I'm sorry for your loss. It must have been hard."

"Thanks, Falco." Krystal said feeling a wave of let down wash over her. Falco's tale of survival had made her hope that, by some miracle, Fox had survived as well. She didn't know the exact details of his death, just that he'd been shot down. "It was hard. It was hard on everyone." Picking up the conversation, Krystal raised her eyes to Falco again. "So, what did you do after you returned to Corneria?"

"What else? We turned tail and ran!" Falco said, undeterred by this sudden change in subject. "Aquas was the least occupied planet, so we thought any of Corneria's remnants would most likely be there." Falco gave a snort of disgust. "Unfortunately, Andross seemed to have the same idea. By the time we arrived, the place was swarming with Venom's patrols. So, we needed a new plan. If we went down there we'd be captured for sure, and neither of us wanted that. Then Katt had the bright idea to check Sector Y."

"Makes sense," Krystal mused quietly. "Sector Y is a virtual graveyard of ships. Wreckage from the first Lylat War still floats around in that area. Also, it's pretty close to Corneria. If someone wanted to hide a remnant of Corneria's military without fear of detection by Venom's patrols, that'd be the place to go. It's radiation storms and all the ionized space dust makes it a hazard to navigate safely. Either that or Meteo."

"Yes, but Meteo's not as friendly to capitol ships," Falco reminded her. "Beside's I heard Venom captured the outpost there during the war. It would have been to easy to be detected." Krystal nodded, conceding her friends point. "Anyway, I agreed that Sector Y was a possibility, and we booked. Sure enough, We found several Cornerian vessels hiding in the debris. They brought us onboard and gave us a place to say. The guy in charge was named Worthington. He debriefed us on what happened while we were away. Bill was there too, and he told me about you being pregnant. I can't tell ya how happy and sad for ya I was! My best friend's wife pregnant with his kid? That made my day!" Falco's face reddened a little and his voice became more sober. "Of course, I knew that you must have been really cut up about it, but I was still happy. I wanted to go and congratulate you, to tell you how much I was sorry for everything that happened, that I wasn't there for you." Falco gave a silly grin and twirled a finger at his temple. "I had this crazy scene cooked up in my head about when I made my "return from the dead!" The avian's blue eyes darkened a little as he swallowed and continued. "But then Bill told me about how you'd left immediately afterwards for some far away system. My wings melted at that."

Krystal felt sorry for her friend. She could sense his disappointment and desire to be a part of the life of his best friend's son. "I'm sorry Falco. I didn't know you were alive. All I knew was that I was alone in the universe. My husband and all my closest friends were dead, and Lylat was under Andross' control. The only thing I had left was my son, and I didn't want him to have to grow up under a dictatorship where we'd constantly be hunted. So, I chose the safer alternative: I ran."

"Where to?" Falco asked quietly.

"Kew."

"Kew, huh?" Falco looked at her disapprovingly. "That's a pretty rough place to raise a kid."

"You're telling me." Krystal agreed. "The whole place is an ugly industry obsessed rat hole! The air is so foul, that I had to put on a gas mask every time I needed to go somewhere."

"Then why go?"

Krystal shrugged. "It was a whole hell of a lot safer than Lylat. Andross probably thought I was dead, but still, if he found out I was alive and had a child, Fox's child no less, he'd slap a bounty on my head so big, I couldn't walk into a store without someone attacking me!"

"Then why come back now?" Falco asked confused. Krystal didn't answer. She knew Falco would disapprove of her reasons for returning. "Was it for revenge?" Krystal remained silent, but was still surprised that Falco had guessed so quickly. Falco took her silence as confirmation and his disapproval showed. "Krystal, what's getting revenge going to change?"

"Everything." Krystal spat indignantly. "Once Star Wolf's gone, I can sleep easy again. I'll be able to rebuild my life and start working against Andross! I can—!"

"Will it bring Fox back?" Falco cut her off. His voice was full of disapproval and anger. "Will it bring back Amanda? Slippy? Lucy? What about Peppy? Will it bring back Peppy and General Pepper? Will Andross roll over and give up control of Lylat? Will all the damage he's caused to so many planets and people be undone? Will things go back to the way they were before all this happened? No! No they won't! It doesn't work like that! The universe doesn't correct itself when a score is settled! Andross will still be in power! Families will still be damaged! In short everything will be the same as it always was! The only difference is that you'll probably be able to get a good night sleep, and there's no guarantee that you will! Hell, odds are that by the end of the whole thing, not only would Star Wolf be dead, but so would your son! I mean come on, Krystal! Think! Use that highly evolved brain of yours! You have a kid now! It's not just like before, when you were on Star Fox and you could go on dangerous missions all the time and not feel obligated to come back! Gosh damn it, Krystal, you just got done preaching all this crap about "taking the safer of 2 alternatives!" Yet you turn right around and plunge into a misconceived revenge attempt, that will most likely get you both killed! Or maybe you die and your son's alone in a strange system ruled by an insane dictator who's got a major grudge against his family! Who's going to protect him? Who's going to give him food when he's hungry? Who's going to teach him the difference between right and wrong if you're not there! And maybe you don't die! Maybe your kid dies! What do you have left without him? Nothing! Nothing but a hollow revenge that's just going to leave you feeling emptier than before, because you've been holding onto it for so long! Is that what you want? Do you think that's what Fox would want? No! He'd want you to keep yourself safe! He'd want you to raise your son big and strong like him, and give him all the love he'd ever need! And then when you died, you'd have been to walk up to Fox, and he'd tell you how proud he was of you that you'd raised your son well!"

Falco's tirade struck Krystal hard, like a thousand slaps in the face. She couldn't defend herself against any of the avian's accusations. Tears filled her eyes and she hid her head in her hands, sobbing with guilt. She had made a mistake coming back to Lylat! She'd put her hatred of Star Wolf ahead of her son's well being! He trusted her! Looked to her for guidance! He was totally dependant on her, and she had been willing to sacrifice him to her lust for revenge. Fox would be so disappointed in her! She hadn't been serving her husband's memory by taking revenge, she'd been desecrating her son's childhood! Krystal sobbed and sobbed, wanting to drown in her own tears. She didn't deserve to live!

Suddenly, strong arms wrapped around her, and Falco's voice was whispering soothing words in her ear. "Hey! Hey, now. It's okay. It's okay. Shh..shh.. C'mon, it's alright. I've gotcha. What's done is done. There's no sense beating yourself up for something you can't change. I didn't mean to getcha upset. Shh...shhh.... Falco's gotcha." Krystal laid her head on Falco's chest, sobbing a little lesser now. They stayed like that for a long time, just sitting there in each other's arms.

"I'm so sorry, Falco!" Krystal sniffed.

"It's alright. You don't need to apologize to me."

"I was so stupid! I shouldn't have put my personal feelings ahead of my child's well being! I'm so disgusted with myself!"

"It's okay. You're here now. That's all that matters."

"I'll never forgive myself! I'm such a terrible mother!"

"That's not true." Falco reassured her. "I'm sure you're a great mother. You were just lonely. I'm a little bitter myself, to tell you the truth. Remember, you're not the only one who lost everything during the war. I lost my reputation as an undefeated pilot, my home, my friends, and most importantly," Falco paused for a moment and grinned. "My war hero status and booty call rights to any girl in Lylat."

Krystal laughed at his joke and smacked Falco's chest playfully. The avian winced in pain. "Oooowww! I see you haven't lost your touch!" Both friends laughed. It was just like old times again.

"So tell me about your kid." Falco prompted Krystal. "What's his name?"

"Marcus. Marcus James McCloud."

"Marcus James McCloud..." Falco mulled the name over in his head. "Good name. Fox woulda loved it."

"I think so too." Krystal smiled.

"What's he look like?"

"He's the spitting image of his father. Except for the blue fur."

"I knew it!" Krystal laughed again at Falco's conceited exclamation. "What else? Tell me more!" With that Krystal began sharing everything she could about her son with Falco, who had so wanted to be apart of his life. They talked for at least an hour about personal things. Memorable moments in each's lives for the past 6 years. Falco told her about the formation of Star Falco, and it's members: Himself, Katt, Randal Fenwick, a gray-furred fox with racoon's markings, and Balthier, the former member of Star Vixen who had escaped captivity on Venom with the help of Timed Badges, given to them by a resident of their dimension before their departure. The badges reanimated the wearer every 24 hours from their trophy state and had been key to his escape. Balthier had proved to be a valuable ally, as his piloting skills were the best on Star Vixen. Randal had once been a barkeep on Corneria at a pub called _The Pig's Knuckle,_ but had joined the Cornerian military when Andross' second invasion began, hoping to cash in on some of the glory while Star Fox did all the work. Not that he was sleezy or anything. He was a good kid, and a decent flyer with a good head on his shoulders. After the battle above Katina, Randal had decided the military wasn't for him, and was honorably (if you could call it that) discharged. When Venom took over he laid low for a while, before starting to run illegal smuggling and bombing runs on Macbeth and throughout the Lylat system. Which is what had drawn Falco's attention.

With a full squadron of pilots and Cornerian starfighters to fly, Star Falco had begun causing as many problems for Andross as they could. They bombed factories, destroyed several outposts, liberated work camps on Corneria. Instead of being mercenaries, Star Falco was more a gang of space pirates, fighting against Andross and looting his ships and factories, helping themselves to anything and everything that caught their eyes. The prices on their heads now rivaled the ones on Star Wolf back when Corneria held all the chips. Krystal, in turn told Falco stories of Marcus' first steps, of the many nights telling him stories about the adventures of Star Fox, and especially of his very sensitive nature and compassion for his mother. It wasn't long before both friends drifted off to sleep on the floor, Krystal on top of Falco. It wasn't sexual. It wasn't even romantic. It was just two friends who had talked themselves out.

Krystal and Falco woke with a start by several pairs of hands, as they hauled the two former teammates to their feet. "What's going on? Take your hands off me!" Krystal shouted angrily at the guards, returning to her Cornerian accent. The nameless thugs grunted and began cuffing her, slapping her wrists into thick restraints.

"Don't struggle!" Falco warned her as he too was cuffed. Krystal was finding that hard to do at the moment, but resisted the urge to knee anyone in the groin as she was dragged out of the cell and down the corridor. She could hear Falco being dragged similarly behind her by two more guards. She turned her head up to the dog on her right.

"Where are you taking us?" Krystal demanded.

"Lord O'Donnell ordered you be brought to his quarters upon our arrival." The dog grunted.

"Why? What is he going to do?" The dog didn't answer, just kept walking down the hallway.

"Don't bother!" Falco shouted from behind her. "These guys can be really deaf sometimes!" There was a loud "oof" as Falco was hit in stomach by one of his guards.

"Shut up!" ordered a bulldog with yellow fangs.

Falco, never being one who responded well to threats, kept right on talking. Again, he was hit. Again, he continued to talk about nothing in defiance of the bigger animal's cruelty. The pair were dragged through the interior of the _Great Wolf_, it's long winded corridors already quite familiar to their feet. The hallways were filled with people, milling about, doing various system checks and repairs. Krystal had never seen so many people on a Dreadnought. The _Great Fox_ had been crewed by at the most 6 people at one time. This new experience of a fully crewed ship might have been enjoyed if not for the situation at hand.

At last, Krystal's head passed out of the ships dimly lit corridors and into the bright lights of the Sargasso Space Colony. It was much more populated than Krystal remembered it, not that she'd ever been on the station, but all the same it was packed and loud. Music of some sort or another played in various areas of Star Wolf's hideout, and there were many colored lights and places to eat. Krystal felt confused. Why would Wolf and his team have so many places to find a good time in their hideout? Why was it so crowded? Was Wolf capitalizing on his new status as a war hero?

The group passed by many, many groups of thugs, who whistled at Krystal as she passed, trying to grope a feel of her ass, breasts, or whatever they could lay hands on. Although repulsed their barbaric behavior, Krystal took a sense of pride in knowing that even though she was in her mid-thirties, she could still be an object of desire to the males of Lylat. They passed into a much quieter area, a long glowing ramp and began to descend into the lower area's of the hideout. Krystal preferred it in here. It was much quieter, and there were no lustful pigs to grope her. And sense the ramp was so narrow she was forced to walk in front while her two guards trudged behind. It was quite a pleasant feeling to be at the head of something, even if it was just a prisoner transfer.

Krystal's enjoyment of her position would've continued, had it not been for the awful smell emanating from below her. She wrinkled her nose and coughed as the reason for the stench entered her line of vision. A lone canine animal was half-staggering up the ramp towards them, clutching the handrail tightly. It's tail was tied in a black sack to its right leg, and its face was covered similarly by a black cloth bag, tied around the neck by a strange looking collar with 2 small eye holes cut into it. Its clothes were, Krystal assumed, that of a prisoner, and were covered with a sort of green slime, which explained the smell. Its emotions were covered over by a thick blanket of doping drugs Krystal suspected had been given to him purposefully. Smart prisoners were trouble makers. Krystal felt a surge of pity for this poor creature before her. It, she couldn't tell if it was a he or a she, was probably once a successful businessman in Lylat, ruined by Venom's rule. She would have touched it but it looked and smelled repulsing.

One of the guards behind Krystal barked at the approaching canine in a disgusted voice. "Ugh! Rasper! Did you just come from the garbage room?" The creature stopped several feet from the group, intimidated by the number of people. Krystal was pondering why they'd called it Rasper, but her unspoken question was answered almost immediately as the collar on it's neck buzzed and released a puff of smoke. The creature let out a terrifying rasping cough and clutched its throat in agony. Krystal pity increased 10 fold as she watched this poor person suffer. The collar, she realized, was the delivery system for whatever sedative like drugs he was on.

As the coughing fit ceased, Rasper straightened up and tilted its head at the group. Krystal could swear its eyes were staring at her. It made her feel uncomfortable, like lasers were burning holes in her body, as it always is when one is being watched by an unknown entity. "Rasper! Get back down to your cell and scrub yourself! You're going to make me vomit!" Rasper tried to start forward again, ignoring the grunts direction, but stopped when the guard leveled a blaster with his head. "I said go scrub yourself! Then you can go upstairs!" Rasper didn't move. "Did you hear me?" the grunt asked. Slowly, Rasper raised a gloved hand and pointed at Krystal. The guard looked from Rasper, to Krystal, and back to Rasper again, looking confused. "What d'you want her name for? She's probably gonna be dead soon anyway!" Rasper's hand remained where it was, pointing insistently at Krystal. Finally the guard looked down at her and growled. "He wants your name. What is it?"

"Kursed." Krystal lied. "My name is Kursed." She now addressed Rasper specifically. "Do you understand?" Rasper's hand lowered and Krystal felt something stir in his instinctual thought patterns. Without much warning, Rasper lunged at her, grasping her hand and trying to pull her down to the floor.

"Hey, hold it!" The guard aimed a kick at Rasper and there was another loud "ooff" as Rasper collapsed. He'd gotten the wind knocked out of him and was having trouble breathing. "No funny stuff! You know better than to torment ladies!" The guard fake chided him. Just then another puff of smoke erupted from the collar. Unable to breathe Rasper didn't receive the full dose, and with the last of his strength, pulled Krystal off her feet and onto the ramp. Putting its covered muzzle into her ear. The stench was horrible and Krystal squirmed to get free. She stopped just long enough to her Rasper's whisper. It was breathless and barely legible but Krystal discerned the words.

"Help...me! K-K-K— !" Rasper lost consciousness on the floor, and Krystal pulled herself free from its already weak grip. He had just pleaded for help!

"Aaahhh! I don't have time for this!" The bulldog picked up the unconscious canine and began walking again. "I'm taking him back to his cell! You can handle these punks, right?"

The other guards nodded assent and continued down into the bowels of the station as the bulldog took a side path that led to the prison block. Krystal watched Rasper disappear from sight, his words still whispering in her ear: "Help...me! K-K-K—!"

Wolf stared at Falco and Krystal from a large red arm chair in the corner of his front room. His one eye darted continuously between his two former acquaintances. Nothing but cold indifference covered his face and Krystal dared not look into his mind. As soon as she entered the room she yelled at Wolf. "Where's Marcus?" Wolf didn't reply to her inquiry, but motioned for the guards to wait in the hall.

"I see you've met our other prisoner. It must have been quite a thrill to learn that your former teammate was still alive."

"What have you done with my son?" Krystal snarled.

Shut up. I don't have time for this." Wolf leaned back in his seat and folded his hands. "I'm going to get right down to brass tacks." He turned to Krystal. "I really don't want you here. You're of no use to me. But I can't simply let you go. So, I have a proposition for you. We're a little understaffed right now. If you'll work here as a waitress, dancer, entertainer for 2 years, I'll let you and your son go unharmed." Krystal was taken aback. She had come expecting Wolf to gun her down, or gun Marcus down, instead he was offering her a job. She looked spitefully at the lupine. "Don't you mean as a barmaid, stripper, and prostitute?" Wolf snorted. "No. I meant what I said. You won't be obligated to do anything like that." Wolf leaned forward and locked eyes with her. "Although, if I were you, I'd keep an open mind. Some of these guys don't like being told "no". And some don't even know the meaning of the word. And when that happens.... well, they tend to get a little violent. At any rate, do we have a deal?"

"Not so fast." Krystal said fixing Wolf with an icy stare. "What about Marcus? How does he tie into this?" Wolf sat back in his chair.

"He doesn't. As far as I'm concerned, he could be your pet. He can stay in your quarters while you work. I don't want him wandering around the station, getting underfoot."

"And what about living conditions?"

"I think you'll find "ladies" have better accommodations than most. The prettier they are, the nicer the room they get." He closed his eye and sighed. "If I were you, I'd take the deal. So, what's it gonna be?"

"What's the catch?" Krystal asked. Experience had taught her that there was always a catch. She expected Wolf to deny a catch, but instead the lupine was very honest.

"The catch is the uniform." He stated matter-of-factly. "It's a little revealing. But then what isn't these days?" Wolf chuckled at his own joke. "That's the only one I can think of. The benefits far outweigh the downsides, if you ask me. Full access to the hideout when your not on the clock, except of course for the hanger bay, Wolf's Den, and other essential areas. And you have to give your word you won't try to escape."

Krystal looked at Falco for advice. The avian shrugged. "It's only for a few years, I'd take it considering the alternatives." Krystal nodded and turned back t Wolf.

"Fine. You've got yourself a deal." Wolf smirked and pointed to a desk next to the wall. On the desktop, was laid a contract stating the terms of their agreement. She picked it up and read it over carefully. Everything seemed to be in order, and there were no tricks that she could see.

"Sign that and I'll have the guards show you to your room. Your son will be waiting there for you." Krystal picked up the pen and put it to the paper. "Just one more thing," Wolf said. "Use your real name. I hate making deals with aliases." Krystal gave him another cold stare. "I give my word I won't rat you out. I don't care who you are." Krystal swallowed and picked up the paper. She signed her name: Krystal McCloud, on the dotted line and handed the paper to Wolf. Wolf took it, glanced at the signature and began folding it up. As he did so, he reached into his pocket and pulled out an access card. "This will get you into most areas of the hideout. It'll also work on any personal quarters, but you'll have to have the access code for it to work." Wolf slipped a piece of folded paper into her hand. "This is your access code. Your room is on the third level. The guards will show you the way. And I'll make sure your personal effects are brought to your room as well. Also, your shift starts at 8 tomorrow morning. Report to Café de Panther at that time. Welcome aboard, Mrs. McCloud." Krystal was silent and began to walk out. Wolf began explaining to Falco that he needed him to lure in the rest of Star Falco, when Krystal walked out. She hoped that she hadn't just made a horrible mistake.

The doors to Krystal's new quarters slid open to reveal Marcus McCloud sitting on the red velvet bedspread of her queen size mattress. "Mommy!" He cried and she rushed forward and scooped him up into her arms.

"Oh Marcus! I was so worried!" Tears of relief flooded down her face as she petted her son's small form. "Did they hurt you? What happened?"

"Nothing. Mr. Wolf gave me something he called "soda" and told me to sit in a big chair and be quiet. Soda's really good, Mommy! Have you ever had it?

Krystal was ready to explode. All the worry and misery of separation and all Wolf did was give him a soda? Krystal realized she was being ridiculous and swallowed down her annoyance.

"Yes, I have, sweetheart." Marcus smiled and gave a small yawn.

"Mommy, I'm tired. Can I go to bed now?"

Krystal looked at the clock. It was almost 10. "No wonder. It's way past your bed time." Krystal helped Marcus off with his shoes and drew back the covers of the big bed. Nestling under the covers Marcus curled up against his mother's side and began to drift off to sleep. Krystal gazed lovingly at her whole world. "Good night, my angel." Marcus was fast asleep and didn't here her.

**4:00 AM. Not bad since I started at 9. Leave a review. Sorry I haven't updated 2 Roses yet, I'm having more fun with this. I will post up a new 2 Roses chapter this weekend though.**


	3. The Good Life?

Chapter 3: The Good Life?

Krystal's alarm clock buzzed on the bedside table. It had been set for 6 but Krystal had been awake for since at least 5:30. For some reason she'd been awakened early and not been able to fall back asleep. The fact was, she just wasn't tired, and the reason she wasn't tired was because she'd actually slept well. For the last few months, her sleep had been restful and relaxed, instead of the terrifying affair that had become the norm for the last 6 years, ever since she'd started working on Sargasso. And that was what worried Krystal. As much as she hated to admit it, the dreams had become part of her routine, and their absence made her anxious. It was an anomaly, and she hated anomalies. They bugged her.

Reaching over to turn off the alarm, Krystal leaned down to give Marcus a good morning kiss. The kit's ear twitched but he remained asleep. Krystal smiled and slid out from beneath the eloquent covers. Walking quietly into the bathroom, Krystal pulled down her pants and sat down on the toilet. After she'd finished relieving herself, she flushed and closed the lid. Then bent down and began to run a shower. She closed the door and began undressing. After testing the water to make sure the temperature was fine, she stepped into the shower, letting the hot water soak into her fur. As she stood there, enjoying the feeling of the water and scrubbing up with fur shampoo, Krystal mulled over the last few weeks. Working at the various bars and restaurants on Sargasso Station was an iffy affair. Everyday she received at least 200 smacks on the ass, 500 tail-pullings, 800 wolf whistles and inappropriate remarks, and 200,000 or more lustful looks. The sense of pride she'd felt on that first day was gone, replaced by an acute irritation at the rude behavior of the barbaric residents of Star Wolf's hideout. The only upside seemed to be that she was encouraged by her managers to give them a good kick in the ego.

"Most girls that work here are just looking to make some easy money," _Café de Panther's _manager, Amber, had told her. "In exchange, they'll do just about anything these guys want to them to. Those girls get what they want, for the most part: Better hours, longer breaks, nicer accommodations, and a lot bigger tips! But ultimately, those girls become another face in a sea of faces and tend to fade into the background after a while." Amber had smiled mischievously as she explained, "But the ones who get the nicest treatment and the most attention, are the ones who ignore the guys, who talk back and push them away." Amber shrugged. "What can I say, they like 'em feisty here."

Krystal had been a bit confused and gave her boss a quizzical look. "And that actually _works_?"

"Most of the time. Don't get me wrong, there are some guys here that'll treat you worse if you ignore them. You'll make some enemies if you chose to be the bad girl, but you'll definitely be a lot better off, believe me!"

Krystal had taken Amber's advice. She'd become the bad girl. For every ass smack, someone got kicked. For every tail pulling, someone got slapped in the face. And for every whistle or sexual comment, Krystal gave a sarcastic, wounding retort. There wasn't anything she could do about the lustful glaces, though. Surprisingly, Amber's prediction came true. The more she said no, the more they pestered her. They sent flowers, chocolates, and jewelry. Gave bigger tips, complimented her on various things, treated her nicely, and each "suitor"'s gift would be extravagant than the last. She assumed it had become a kind of perverse sport for them: Let's See Who Can Screw the New Girl! But despite the better treatment, flow of money, and useless gifts, all the attention was very wearing on her. In the end it came down to one thing: Give in to it or get used to it.

Krystal had met Katt again on her first day of work. The two friends shared a tearful reunion, and exchanged shortened life stories. Katt had explained about her capture, and how she had been given a similar deal as Krystal. Apparently Wolf had used her as bait to lure in Star Falco, and while he was waiting for them to come after her, he was going to make good use of her. Falco had apparently been offered the same thing, and took it. The couple were now sharing a cell, and each had a separate work regiment to complete daily. Katt worked as a waitress, dancer, etc, same as Krystal, while Falco was given the task of hauling garbage down to the room where it was processed. "Smell's horrible down there." Falco had griped over lunch one day, expressing his dislike of the time he had to spend down there. "And that guy Rasper is a nutcase! He works down there ya know! That's why he smelled so horrible the day we arrived! He shovel's the stuff into the trash compactors!"

"Why does that make him a nut job?" Krystal had asked confused. Falco shuddered.

"It's not because of his job! It's cause whenever I go in there, I can feel his eyes on the back of my neck!" Falco shuddered again as he thought about it. "He doesn't talk, doesn't move, doesn't make a sound! He just watches me! Like I'm some kind of circus freak! And that coughing is enough to make anyone's blood freeze!"

"That's not his fault!" Krystal defended Rasper. "Whatever drug they use to make that smoke in his collar irritates his lungs!" Krystal couldn't understand why she had been so quick to defend the terrifying, repulsive creature! She didn't even like him/her/it whatever, Rasper! Yet she felt so sorry for him! She wanted to help him as he'd asked her to! Pity could explain that, but there was something else. A feeling she got when he was around.

Rasper was one of the most repulsive sights she'd ever laid eyes on! He was creepy, he smelled funny, and the sound of his coughing made her flinch. She didn't even know what species he was! And yet, whenever she saw him, Krystal couldn't keep her eyes off him. It wasn't a romantic, or sexual desire, just a peculiar fascination, bordering on obsession with the enigmatic person cloaked beneath a mask, both literal and figurative. She couldn't stand to be within 10 feet of him, but whenever he left it felt like she unexplainedly missed his presence. When he walked by she felt strange. She couldn't quite put her finger on why or even how she felt strange, she just did! He was a mystery, and she felt herself becoming more and more curious.

But Rasper not withstanding, her days were full. First, it was wake up at 7, shower, prepare for the day's work. Wake Marcus, get him fed and clothed, and then leave for work. Next came changing shifts with a fellow co-worker, and doing rounds on tables depending on what joint she was working that day. At 1:00 she had her lunch break with Katt and Falco, doing a quick check-up on Marcus, and then back to work until 6. Then she usually went back to her room, made dinner, and spent some time with Marcus, telling him a story or playing a game. Then at 7:30 came bed preparation, brushing of fangs, bathing Marcus, putting on pajamas. Then at 8:00 Marcus had to curl up and go to sleep, while Krystal either went out to visit Falco and Katt, or just simply sat up to watch television, making sure to keep the volume low so as not to disturb her son. Then at 12:00 Krystal would turn in herself. And the cycle would start over again.

Krystal cut off the jet of water and stepped out of the shower. Taking a towel, she wrapped it around herself and reached for her fur dryer. Once she was done drying off, she used another towel to wipe up the excess water on the floor. After she finished Krystal reached into a clothes locker and withdrew a clean uniform. It looked like something someone out of the Arabian Nights would wear! It was a very uncomplimenting red color that clashed with her dark blue fur. Oh well, it was just the job. She clipped the brassier to her chest, and fastened the loose dancing skirt around her hips, taking care to pull a pair of black panties up under it. Krystal admired her reflection in the mirror, sliding on the golden accessories. Satisfied that she looked alright, she brushed her fangs and applied make-up and a light perfume.

When Krystal emerged she was ready for work. It was now 7:00 in the morning and she covered herself in a bathrobe, so as not to expose her son to her "revealing" uniform. Krystal walked over to the bed where her son lay sleeping. Krystal stroked her son's head between the ears lovingly. She didn't have the heart to wake him, and decided to let him do it on his own.

With a last loving caress she walked into the kitchenette and began making blue-berry pancakes for when he woke up.

**Short chapter that was originally much longer, but I'm making this a transition chapter. Thanks for your reviews and please leave some more! I'm writing the fourth chapter right now! Should be up later today!**


	4. Breakout

Chapter 4: Breakout

When Krystal arrived at Café de Panther, her assigned station for the day, a peculiar sight greeted her. All the waitresses were gathered around the cash register talking in hushed tones. They appeared to be having some kind of argument, and Krystal decided to investigate. She approached the counter, removing, as she did so, the long overcoat she wore over her uniform and hanging over the counter. "Hey, what's up?" She enquired of the other waitresses. They all turned and gave Krystal a strange appraising look. Then an idea seemed to dawn over them and their expressions became pleasant.

"Hi, Kursed!" grinned a pretty little blond dog whose name was Elle. "How's it going?"

"Alright, I guess." Krystal replied pretending not to listen as she went behind the counter to retrieve her pad and pen. "What were you guys arguing about?" she asked testing the water. A strong sense of deception flowed from the group.

"Oh, we're not arguing!" A yellow furred vixen named Ali assured her. "We were just talking about how busy we are today!" Ali's face was sincere, but her mind exuded fear and disgust. She was obviously lying so that she didn't have to cover a customer she didn't like. "Listen, I was just about to get table 16 over there, but since you're here, I'm just going to go back to my room now! Would you mind....?" Ali's voice trailed off and she gestured at Krystal.

Krystal read into her co-worker's intentions, there wasn't any malevolence there, but the vixen was still concealing something, something none of them wanted to do. "Why can't one of you do it?" Krystal enquired, gesturing at the other 4 girls with her pen. The waitresses faces turned red as they tried to come up with excuse.

"Uh, work!" yipped Elle.

"Yeah, we're really busy!" a brown furred vixen called Danni picked up, gesturing around and groaning at the courtyard. The other girls gave similar answers and Krystal gave them a shrug.

"Okay, whatever. I'll get table 16." She began walking towards the unwanted table, jotting down a few notes on her pad. She could feel waves of relief alleviate the waitresses' troubled minds and thoughts like: "Better her than me." crossed their minds. Krystal didn't know who this guy was, but he must be a pretty big douche bag to repulse every waitress in the café.

Of course there was another option she'd forgotten to consider. As she approached the table there was a loud wretching sound and Krystal jumped nearly dropping her pad. Rasper sat at the table clasping his throat in one of his trade mark coughing spells. Krystal now understood why Ali and the other waitresses had been so eager to pass this one onto her. Her heart quivered as that same pitying feeling overwhelmed her. Rasper stopped coughing and sat back up to his chair, his head hanging to one side. Krystal composed herself and determined not to back down from the challenge. Who knows? She might even learn something about him she previously didn't know. Holding her head up high, Krystal walked right up to Rasper and looked down at him. Swallowing she spoke, "Is there something I can help you with, sir? Do you need anything?"

Rasper's gaze shifted to the blue-furred vixen, his invisible eyes bored holes right into hers. Determined not to back down, Krystal didn't blink or break eye contact, she just stared back trying to see past the mask and into his eyes. She could sense something struggling against the fog of medication that clouded his/her brain. A higher brain power perhaps? _Oh, let it win! Let it win! I want you to say something! Something I can work with!_ Krystal pushed her thoughts into the thick cloud cover of sedation pouring all her curiosity, concern, and pity into them. Suddenly, something inside Rasper's head gave way and a small dark hole appeared in Krystal's mental rendering of his mind.

"K...KKK...Kursed?" The hoarse whisper from Rasper's mouth startled Krystal and she poured encouragement into that hole. _Yes! That's it! Talk! Talk to me! I want to know who you are! Tell me! Please! _She felt a stirring of consciousness echoed from inside the darkness of his mind, something like a groan escaped through the whole. Krystal's excitement was peaking now. Her eyes were wide and all her energy was channeled through her telepathy, trying to clear away the fog away from the awakening mind. _Just a little more_...

"Kursed?" a delicate black-furred hand placed itself on her shoulder, shaking her. Krystal willed whoever it was to go away and leave her alone! She was so close! So close to unshackling Rasper's mind that nothing else mattered! Even if it was Wolf's hand gripping her shoulder and shaking her more insistently, she couldn't care less! "Kursed? Kursed! What wrong with you!"

"Go away!" Krystal said tearing her self away for a millisecond. Rasper's mind would be open to her if she could just widen the hole! Suddenly, there was a buzzing sound and a puff of smoke began rising to Rasper's face. _No! _Krystal screamed mentally. Without thinking she bent down and quickly began inhaling all of the smoke she could bear. Krystal let out a long wretching cough as the sedative began working its way into her system. She saw a soft mist cloud her mental eyes, making it harder to stare through the hole, which had narrowed slightly with the reintroduction of the drug. Determined not to be beaten, Krystal did the best she could to clear away the haze in front of her. _Hello? _She shouted through the hole, hoping that someone would answer. Another soft groan emanated from within. Krystal was determined though, and decided that the only thing to do was attempt a Mental Middle Ground. A visual representation of both individuals thoughts. On Cerinia, it was usually used intimately between mates, and in accordance Krystal had only ever done it with hers. But if she wanted to uncover the truth behind Rasper's identity she felt she had no choice. Putting her hands on either side of Rasper's masked head, Krystal brought their foreheads together, establishing a link, and jumping through the dark hole in Rasper's mask.

_It was dark. Krystal couldn't tell where she was exactly. Only that she was in a field. The only light came from above her, where a hole in the vast cloud cover let in a circle of bright, warm light. Krystal became aware that she was naked, but this was no surprise to her. In a MMG state, your thoughts were laid bare before your partner and nothing could be hidden. Krystal's fur color had also changed from Storm blue, to her natural sapphire, and her fur tattoos were again visible. She looked around desperately for Rasper's consciousness, but he was nowhere in the pool of light. "Hello?" She shouted into the dark field. Something on her left stirred an rolled over in the grass. Krystal's gaze snapped in that direction and she was just in time to see a thick, chestnut colored tail slide back into the darkness. Krystal began running towards where the tail had been. Suddenly, the ground shook beneath her feet and the window of sunlight began to shrink. "No!" Krystal shouted at the hole willing it to stop. "Not now! I'm so close!" Krystal had a choice to make. She knew if she stayed the hole would close completely, and the MMG would distablize, and she would be trapped in Rasper's mind until an opening was made again! But if she went back she might never be able to reach Rasper for a long time!_

_Unfortunately, the answer was obvious. Krystal concentrated and began rising into the air towards the diminishing circle. As she floated out through the hole, she looked down again. Someone was standing beneath her. "I'll be back for you! I promise!" Krystal shouted as she rose into the haze of her own mind. _

_As the hole closed completely, she could swear she heard someone shout in a sleepy mid-toned voice: "Okay! I'll be waiting!"_

Krystal's eyes snapped open and she released the head of a screaming Rasper. Her vision was blurred, but she could make out Rasper's figure covered in white smoke. The enigmatic entity's hands clutched its throat and the screaming mixed in with coughing. Krystal became aware that someone was slapping her cheek. "Krystal? Krystal can you hear me? What the hell's wrong!" Krystal recognized the whispered voice to be Katt's, which would explain why her real name had been used. Krystal began shaking her head from side to side, trying to rid her mind of the fog caused by the smoke she'd inhaled. "I'm okay Katt!" Krystal said drozily, sitting up to look her friend in the face. "What's happening to Rasper?"

"How should I know?" Katt answered staring back at the suffering creature. "You had your heads mashed together, and all of a sudden his hands go to his throat, and he tries to pull off that color. He started screaming and smoke started billowing from that collar! I was just trying to get you off of him!"

Krystal realized that the collar was designed so that if the wearer tried to take it off, to give him a good shock, and start spurting more smoke to subdue the resistance. Rasper's screaming had attention, and soon two bulky canine guards came striding over to investigate.

"Hey quiet down, scum!" Rasper continued screaming and coughing, unable to comply. The guard raised foot to kick Rasper. "I said: Shut up!" As the guard brought his kick upward, Rasper, displaying incredible reflexes for some one in his position, caught the leg. The large dog looked startled, and froze for an instant. Rasper reached up to the holster on the guard's leg and in one swift movement drew the blaster and fired it into the astonished dog's eyes. The guard dropped to the floor stunned, and Rasper stood up and pointed it at his companion. The second guard narrowly avoided Rasper's second shot, and dived behind another table in the café. Krystal was dumbstruck. She could only feel a fierce instinct behind his actions but it was still impressive. If this was what he was capable of while heavily drugged, than she'd be terrified to meet him alone when he was sober.

Rasper put the blaster pistol to the still smoking collar and pulled the trigger. The collar smoked and sputtered for a moment, and then the ugly smoke stopped coming. Rasper was breathing heavily as his body fought the last of the sedative, and he gripped the table. At last, he was free of the smoke! The second guard stood up from his cover behind the table and fired a red laser bolt at Rasper. The recovering Rasper rolled nimbly aside and fired his own blast. This one took the guard in the forehead, and the dog whined and dropped to the deck. Rasper ran behind the table and retrieved the second pistol. The commotion had attracted more guards and many thugs who wanted a piece of the action. Rasper eyed the approaching group warily. He widened his stance and tossed one of the pistols behind him and into Krystal's hands. Krystal was confused by the gesture, and was forced to assume that he wanted her to back him up. Apparently, he'd labeled her as a friend and expected her co-operation in his escape attempt. Krystal knew she couldn't interfere because of the contract Wolf had made her sign, and she felt sorry for that fact, because she wanted to help desperately.

Rasper fired twice, dropping two of the smaller thugs and launched a flying kick at a third more bulky ape. The kick connected with the guard's stomach and Rasper brought his left leg up under the chin, while simultaneously grabbing the guard's pistol, and pushing off in a flip, firing the pistol at the ape's chest. Rasper landed on the floor in a kneel, and the ape fell heavily to the floor. Rasper then crossed his arms and rapid fired into the semi-circle of aggressors, catching most in the head and chest. A lone fox sped towards Rasper, his hand raised in attempt to punch him. Rasper hissed and kneeled down swiftly, blasting the tail restraint of his leg. Rasper swiped his leg and tail across the fox's legs, causing them to buckle. With a grunt the vulpine dropped to the floor and Rasper fired into the space between his eyes. All of a sudden a roar issued from behind Rasper as a large tiger swung a long pipe horizontally at Rasper's torso. Rasper ducked the blow and fired into the tiger's groin. There was a loud yowl as the tiger grasped his crotch and dropped the pole. Rasper seized the pipe and swung it into the cat's face, knocking him out cold.

"Hey, a thousand credits to whoever drops that guy!" A scared looking guard shouted from a safe distance away. There was a loud cheer and many shouts of "Let's get 'em boys!" as every thug in Sargasso stood up and charged at Rasper. Realizing he was far too outnumbered to continue fighting, Rasper did a long back flip, landing lightly on Krystal's shoulders and pushed off, using her shoulder's as a spring board to grab an over hanging service ladder. There were many cries of dissatisfaction from the mob, as their query climbed up and away onto the overhead ramps, and began running swiftly towards the lifts. Krystal felt a surge of joy for him. After who knows hog long of being imprisoned he was going to escape. She could feel his mind becoming clearer and some rational thought return to his brain, like a sleepy child opening it's eyes after a long sleep. He stopped moving momentarily and turned slowly to face the mass below him. Krystal felt faint thought patterns of confusion run through Rasper's head. Thought's like: "Where am I? How'd I get here?" and "Why am I wearing this mask?" Rasper reached up and pulled at the black sack on his head. The collar impeded his attempt at its removal and he tried to break the collar off, bending all his strength on it. There was a faint breaking sound as part of the casing broke of in his gloved hand. Realizing for the first time that he had a blaster in his pocket, the awakening Rasper adjusted the setting and pointed it at the collar's bulb. He fired and the bulb was blown away in a flash of red light. Pulling the remnants of the band from around his neck, Rasper pulled away the black covering. Krystal squinted and widened her eyes, trying her hardest to make-out her project's true face. He had chestnut colored fur, and tall pointed ears, but that was all she could determine, and that was hard enough to go on, seeing as it was common for most canines and vulpines. He was just to far away to see clearly.

"Can you see his face, Katt?" Krystal asked her friend, hoping she could provide some description.

"Nope, he's just too far away." Katt replied, dashing Krystal's hopes. She would've just taken a dive into his mind normally, but she wasn't close enough to get an accurate reading. Rasper rubbed his neck where the collar had previously been and cracked his neck from side to side. Suddenly, his ears perked and he turned towards the lift, who's doors were sliding open. Krystal felt a surge of recognition, anger, and fear from Rasper and there was a loud blasting sound as a blue laser bolt soared into his face. Krystal's heart dropped as he went down. No! He was so close to being free! She watched in horror as the tall figures of Wolf O'Donnell and Panther Caroso came into to view, eying the limp figure on the ground. Panther turned to Wolf and said something to the lupine who gave Panther a look and picked up the unconscious Rasper. Fitting the bag over his head again, Wolf addressed t the crowd.

"Go back to your own business! There's nothing to see here! And if anyone tries to intercept us on our way down to the detention center, they'll find themselves dead!" There was a general murmur of voices and Krystal watched as Panther and Wolf disappeared from view. The crowd began to disperse again. Krystal felt a feeling of let down grip her heart. She turned to Katt and looked into her friends eyes.

"Are you okay, Krystal?" Katt asked. She didn't answer, but nodded sadly and began walking away. "Kursed?" Katt called after her friend. "What's wrong?" Krystal didn't reply. She was feeling so bad for Rasper. He was amazing! He was strong, smart, resourceful, and determined, and that was just on instinct. He could be so much more than what he was and yet Star Wolf wasted his talent and kept him drugged, working in a smelly garbage room. Krystal made up her mind, then and there to help Rasper escape if she got the chance. She wouldn't betray his trust again. But in order to do that she needed a plan.

As she passed a table where several ruffians were sitting, a grey avian whistled and smacked her ass. "Hey, baby! You're looking particularly fine today! Why don't you and I get out of here after your shift and have some "good times!"

Krystal froze. She was on the verge of giving the bird a swift kick in the nads, but instead she turned back to him and gave a sexy smile. "Oh, gee. I don't know. You might be a little too rough for a girl like me." She leaned down and put her muzzle close to his ear. "What's your room number?"

The avian smiled lustfully. "24567."

"Nice...I'll be over about 8...and I better get a big tip for this." She slid her hand slowly down the avian's arm suggestively. "See you then." Krystal stood up and walked slowly away. The avian and his friends whistled again and started grasping shoulders. Krystal felt disgusted with herself. She had just promised sex to a ruffian she didn't even know. But if she was going to help Rasper, she needed to duck below the radar, and being a bad girl wasn't going to help. But if she became a "good girl" maybe that would jack down her popularity, and allow her more access to places she needed to be. She retrieved her pen and pad from the table, and went back to work, formulating plans that needed to be made.

**Don't stop reading! Leave a review! I promise it works out fine!**


	5. Means to an End

**5****TH**** chapter already? Wow I'm on a roll! Well, I don't know about it being a "roll" because the last 2 chapter's have been really short and sloppy to me! I don't know what's wrong with me! So apologies for the sloppiness, I'll try to do better here.**

Chapter 5: Means to an End

Krystal lay next to a red colored dog in his bed. He was snoring and he seemed to be enjoying himself immensely. _No wonder, _Krystal thought trying not to look at the nameless grunt she was in bed with. _I am pretty good if I do say so myself._ Pulling back the covers she stood up, smoothing her skirt out. _To bad for him it's only an illusion._ Krystal snickered quietly and made sure her imprint was imbedded in the mattress. She sprayed a little perfume to give the impression that she'd actually been there for a few hours, instead of a few minutes. She picked up the credits he'd paid her with from the table and stuffed them into her coat pocket. "And look on the bright side," she smirked at the unconscious canine. "The pleasure will last you the whole night, instead of just a few seconds." The canine gave no reply and grunted. Krystal released the door and walked out, fastening her overcoat over her body. She took pride in the strategy she'd laid out for her "dates" over the past few weeks. First, she'd choose them at random from the many rude pigs she met at work, she offered them a night of sex in exchange for a modest fee, and then as she entered their rooms late at night, placed her hand on their chest and sent a shock of telepathic energy coursing through their bodies, knocking them out cold. Then, she simply used her telepathy to pull at the strings of their dreams like a puppet master to make sure they had a realistic "night with her." Then she collected her fee and left them alone, no worse for the mental wear. Thankfully, the dog had been her last "appointment" for the night. She was tired and wanted to go to sleep. It was too late to go visit Katt and Falco, and there was nothing else she really wanted to do. Krystal walked down the glowing ramp from the fifth level to the third, glancing out the large viewport to stare into empty space. She felt amazed that it had once seemed beautiful to her. Each star had felt like a precious diamond in a black velvet cloth, and she remembered watching them with Fox during lazy nights on _Great Fox III_. Once he had died though, all the beauty in the universe seemed to disappear. She now thought of space only as disease and danger wrapped in darkness and silence. It wasn't something she feared, but it also wasn't the romantic, homelike place she thought it was when Fox was alive.

She turned onto the side path that led to the third level entrance, and walked through the arch. It was dimly lit, and the walk to her room seemed like an eternity. Finally, her door came into view and she released it, using her card and access code. The door slid smoothly open and she quietly stepped inside. Marcus breathed peacefully in bed, his slumber undisturbed by his mother's return. Taking care not to wake him, Krystal quickly removed her pajamas from her dresser drawer and tip-toed into the bathroom. She undressed, then redressed, used the toilet, and brushed her fangs, going through her bedtime routine. She turned out the bathroom light and released the door, walking quietly past the bed and over to her desk. She pulled out a pen and paper, not wanting to store anything on a electrical device, lest her computer be hacked. She had written on this pad before, and there was a list of names and figures on the page of all the men she'd "slept-with" over the last few weeks. She checked off the names of the night's "arrangements" from the list and added the amounts they'd paid. After that was done, Krystal yawned and turned on her computer screen. She opened her messages folder and counted the numbers of letters. They were, of course, all requests from various ruffians who wanted to sex her. She began picking random scoundrels from the cacophony of junk mail, her eyes barely flicking over the names. 2 names in particular stuck out at her though. Panther Caroso and Regina Teera. Krystal's eyes widened, and she selected both messages then deleted the rest. Panther and Teera both had reputations as hopeless sex fiends, in the sense that they had sex a lot with many different partners. If they were coming after her, she had finally made the reputation she needed. She opened Panther's first and a text only message scrolled across the screen. It began like most love letter's she'd received from him in the past. He liked to go the romantic route, and went on about how beautiful she was for several paragraphs, complementing her every step of the way. He finished with an invitation to dinner with him in his quarters on Friday night at 9, 3 days away.

_I will of course make it worth your while. _He had written suggestively. _Please consider my offer and send me your answer as soon as possible. Until we meet, my sweet._ Krystal smirked. "Here I go again." she thought as she typed out an acceptation note. She sent it on its way and opened Teera's letter. It was short and sweet.

_Dear Kursed,_

_I hear you're a girl who likes to party. How would you like to come to my quarters on Friday at 8 for a slumber party with me and some of my girlfriends? It's going to be fun! We're going to be playing some very special games. You should definitely consider it. If you did decide to come, I could pull some strings and get you an access card to the detention center. I know your friends with that Katt girl, who you should be carful of, and I know you'd like to be able to visit her more often. Games, prizes, benefits. What's to consider? Please get back to me as __soon as possible!_ _Have a pleasant week!_

_XXXX's_

_Regi Teera_

Krystal was awestruck. She couldn't believe what Teera had offered her! A access card to the detention center? This was the chance she'd been waiting for! With a prison access card, not only would she be able to visit Falco and Katt more often, but also she would finally be able to get to Rasper! After his breakout, Rasper had been confined to his sell, only allowed to go to work and back, and Krystal hadn't seen him since. But if she had that card, all that could change! She could finally sit down and talk to him, with no distractions, or noisy guards to interrupt them. Those she could take care of beforehand. She typed an eager reply to Teera's invitation, promising her attendance. Already scheming, she sent the message on its way and smiled evilly to herself. This was too perfect! Two members of Star Wolf in one night! This was her lucky.... Krystal froze in her chair, realizing the predicament she'd just gotten herself into. She had 2 dates in one night!

Krystal spent the entire 3 days worrying about her engagements. She felt stupid for not reading both requests before saying that she would go! Now she was stuck. Each perverted member would be expecting her attendance at their respective quarters on the same night! There were so many things that needed to be worked out! Which date should she keep, and which should she blow off. The pros and cons ran like this. For one thing, Panther's date would have been easy to do by itself. After dinner, she'd have gotten her payment, knocked him out and left, but she had no guarantees that his payment would be as useful as Teera's. Still, he was a senior member of Star Wolf and could "pull some strings" much more easily than Teera.

Teera's "party" was to be more than 1 person and the "fun" she'd promised was sure to be a prolonged affair, though Krystal would be rewarded in a way that she needed, and she felt it worth the difficulty.

Another problem was that the dates were at separate times, Panther's being at 9 and Teera's starting at 8. How was she supposed to slip out of a lesbian orgy to go to a romantic formal dinner? She would surely be missed if she left either one, and the attire for each was directly opposite the other. And what about drugs and alcohol? How was she supposed to keep a clear head when they both would most likely be pushing wine and recreational drugs into her system? She could refuse to drink. No, that was sure to arouse suspicion and get her into both scoundrels' bad books. As to drugs, Panther _might_ try to drug her, but it was more likely he'd stick with getting her drunk and then jumping her. However, Teera was definitely going to try both. It was more fun that way for her. Yes, this was definitely a pickle!

"I'd just cancel one." Katt advised when Krystal came to her feline friend with her dilemma. "No sense running yourself ragged over trifles."

"This isn't a trifle!" Krystal whispered heatedly. "If I don't go, they'll be offended and never invite me over again! I'll loose the chance of getting two more pieces to the puzzle that might be useful to me down the road!"

"Ah, but here's what you do," Katt whispered drawing Krystal's head in closer. "You send your deepest regrets that you can't attend, in a handwritten note! You kiss it with lipstick on and spray some perfume on it, and wham! You've got them hooked!"

Krystal shook her head. "No, that won't work!"

"Yeah it will!"

"No it won't!"

"Yeah it wi–! Listen." Katt rolled her eyes and looked exasperatedly at her vixen friend. "Why do say "it won't work"?"

"Because, we're not talking about two people who want to date me! We're talking about two people whose only goal here is to fuck me! A sweet little note with lipstick and perfume on it is not going to work on these two! Moreover, there are a thousand other girls on this station who would gladly lay down and let themselves be taken without a moment's hesitation!"

"Yeah, but not as none of them are as beautiful as—!"

"Don't say it!" Krystal cut her off.

Katt sighed frustratedly. "Okay, since you're so eager to do everything the hard way, how bout this." She composed herself and started again. "Send Panther a letter asking him to push dinner back to 6."

"I'm not off till 6." Krystal reminded her. "And I need at least half an hour to get Marcus dinner and get dressed and showered and—!"

"I get it!" Katt said impatiently. "7 then! Just make sure it's at least an hour before Teera's party! Make sure the message he gets from that is that you want more "alone time" with him! Once that's done, you just follow your routine and knock him out. Then you're free for the rest of the night!"

"There are several things in your plan that might go wrong," Krystal began pointing a finger at her friend's face. "One, what if Panther's already told the rest of Star Wolf he has a date with me?"

Katt shrugged. "Just tell him not to tell anyone that the time's been changed."

"What if he hasn't, and my request makes him suspicious?"

Katt glared annoyed at Krystal. "You know you're not helping me help you?" Krystal apologized and Katt rolled her eyes and continued. "Just find out if he's told them or not!"

"But how do I—?"

"Figure it out!" Katt cut her off.

Krystal was a little taken aback by Katt's hostility. " Is something wrong, Katt?"

"No! I'm fine!"

"You're being hostile."

"I'm annoyed! You're like the most impossible person to help ever!"

Krystal tilted her head and narrowed her eyes. "Are you and Falco alright?"

"Yes! I told you....!" Katt turned her head away in frustration.

"Did you have a fight?"

"No! Gosh dammit, do you want my help or not?"

Krystal gave Katt a calculating look, but decided to drop the subject. "Sorry. Just concerned, I guess. You were saying?"

Katt rolled her eyes and sighed heavily. "I'm sorry, Krystal. I didn't mean to be so impatient, I'm just...." Katt's voice trailed off. The feline shut her eyes and rubbed her forehead. Krystal put a hand on her friend's shoulder.

"Katt, what's wrong?" Katt shook her head.

"I...I'm just really, really tired, that's all." She looked it too. Her eyes were partially bloodshot and her tail only twitched a little, instead of the long, smooth strokes that were the norm for her. She moved with a shuffle in her step, and her black fur coat was losing luster. Krystal felt for her friend. She was working 10 hour shifts with no pay, was forced to sleep in a cell on a lumpy mattress made for 1 person, while simultaneously sharing it with her husband. She had a million different issues to deal with, and was probably malnourished, seeing as her prison food was second hand, second hand food, not even as healthy as the slop they served in the station's restaurant. Yet, Katt barely ever let her problems show. She'd give a sly, flirtatious smile and go on; moreover, Katt found time, not only for her own problems, but also Krystal's.

Krystal rubbed her friends shoulder and gave her a warm embrace. It was the first one she'd given to anyone, besides Marcus, for 6 years. When Fox died, it was like the fire of her kindness had died too, leaving her heart susceptible to the galaxy's many cold winds. But, with the recovery of Falco and Katt, the embers of those forgotten emotions had been stirred, and now glowed inside her heart with at least a warming heat. It was part of the reason, Krystal supposed, that she had any desire to help Rasper at all. And if she was to have any hope of that, she would need Teera's card, and maybe Panther's authority.

Krystal slowly let her friend go, leaning back into her chair. Katt yawned and gave Krystal a thankful look. "Thanks. I think I needed that."

"No problem." Checking the watch on the far wall of the restaurant, Krystal stood up. "Listen, I'd better go. My break ends in 15 minutes, and I still haven't gotten Marcus lunch yet."

"Are you going to take my advice?" Katt asked a little sleepily. Krystal nodded.

"I've got nothing better. I'll give it a try." Krystal again put her hand on Katt's shoulder. She gave it a parting squeeze and began walking away towards the ramp to the lower levels.

"Let me know how it turns out!" Katt called after her. Krystal waved a hand in farewell, not looking back.

"Will do!"

And so the next 3 days came and went, the ever darkening storm cloud that was the date looming overhead. Krystal made good on her word and sent Panther a video message asking for the time to be pushed back to 7. It was a video message, and Krystal made sure to wear the most "flattering" thing she owned, oozing seduction into every millisecond of the recording, making sure, of course, that Marcus was indisposed while she composed her electric sex note. Soon after she received a reply: "_7 it is." _There was a spot of good news. He hadn't asked any questions.

Good news and bad news arrived later Friday in the form of a message from Teera:

_Dear Kursed,_

_So happy you decided to come! As to your questions about "dress code" something formal might be nice. I'm sure you'd look good in anything, but I'd love to see an evening gown on that curvy figure! Also, you're payment. I know you like to be paid in advance, but I find that it makes a girls "performance" much better when their working for something. Rest assured you'll get your reward, but after the party, when I've had my fill. Don't worry though, I have a feeling you'll enjoy it too. I think that you'll find that I have ways to make it enjoyable for everyone, especially you! See you tonight!_

_XXXX's_

_Regi_

When she was through reading, Krystal bit her lip. "Well, that makes things a little more problematic." Teera had just upped the difficulty level. Not being paid in advance meant that she couldn't just "take the money and run." She'd have to actually stay through a considerable portion of the party, then try to knock them all out. And if she stayed, she'd be more likely to be intoxicated or drugged, or both. It was still a pickle, and she still had to do it. Krystal got up from her chair. Kissing Marcus goodbye from seat at the table, she disappeared out the door, heading back up towards the café. Before she returned to work though, she stopped by to see Katt, who had the afternoon off that day. She had a favor to ask.

At 6, Katt was waiting in Krystal's quarters. She was playing a game with Marcus, whom she'd taken too immediately. For the next 45 minutes, the two old friends worked solely on Krystal's appearance. They showered (not together) shampooed, brushed, conditioned, groomed, and blow dried her hair and fur, brushed, flossed, and rinsed her teeth, painted finger and toenails, did make up, fluffed her tail, and finally dressed her in her finest, and only formal dress, decking her out with her best jewelry.

The dress was black, and hardly complimented her dark blue fur. Luckily, the gold arm bracelets, choker, and hair piece worked with the black to give her a passing look. Krystal and Katt examined her appearence critically in the bathroom mirror. "Do I look alright?" the vixen asked the feline. "A lot's riding on this."

"You look fine." Katt assured her as Krystal sprayed on some perfume. "I'm sure you'll knock 'em dead!"

"If only," Krystal chuckled. Katt gave her a puzzled look.

"What do you mean by that?"

Krystal chuckled again. "Well, that's what I'd like to do, literally! Kill them."

Katt gave the vixen a serious look. "But you're not are you?"

Krystal shook her head. "No. Only in my dreams. As much as I hate to admit it, I need those two right now. Plus, I don't think Wolf would take kindly to me bumping off 2 of his team."

Katt sighed in relief clutching a hand to her chest. "Whew. You had me worried there for a sec!"

Krystal and Katt walked out of the bathroom and checked the time. 6:54 PM. "Looks like I'd better get going." Krystal said turning to face Katt. Leaning down she called Marcus in from the kitchenette, where the young vulpine had been finishing his dinner. The blue furred kit ran into his mother's arms for a hug. "Now," Krystal began holding her son by the shoulder's at half arm's length. "You behave for Aunt Katt while I'm gone, is that clear?" Marcus nodded. "Good." Krystal kissed him and stood up, walking over to the door. Katt walked with her and Krystal turned to bid her farewell. "Thanks Katt. I really owe you for watching Marcus tonight!"

"No problem!" Katt hugged her friend and went to stand by Marcus. Krystal blew her son a kiss and released the door.

"I love you, Marcus. Be good. I'll be back tonight. Late!"

Krystal heard her offspring squeak a short "Bye Mommy!" as the door closed, and she kept walking. Panther and she had arranged for him to pick her up at the entrance to the third floor's elevator. Since Krystal didn't have a key card that allowed access to _The Wolf's Den_, Star Wolf's private living area, Panther had to escort her up the elevator, so she could gain access.

With impeccable timing, Panther appeared on the stroke of 7, dressed in a rich black tuxedo and bow tie with a red rose pinned to his coat. He held a bouquet of similar roses in his hands, and he gave Krystal his most dashing smile. "Good evening, my dear. I must say, you look ravishing tonight!" He stepped gracefully off the lift and presented the bouquet to Krystal with a bow. "These are for you." Playing into the role, as she had so many times before, Krystal accepted the flowers, giving them a lingering sniff.

"Why thank you. They're lovely." Panther grinned and looked Krystal up and down.

"I'm glad that they are to your liking!" He offered Krystal his arm. "Now if you are ready, dinner awaits!" Panther purred. Krystal smiled and took it, shifting the flowers into the crook of her other arm. Both of them boarded the elevator, arm in arm, and Panther slid his card through the card reader. While he was entering his code, Krystal used her peripherals to make out the numerical sequence. 8..3...6...2...5...6. The lift whirred to life and began to ascend into the base. During the ride, Krystal committed the sequence to memory. Having a member of Star Wolf's access code would definitely be of use later.

_The Wolf's Den _was a private level, the highest of Sargasso Station, where the members of Star Wolf's personal quarters were located. Very few people on the station had ever been there, and it was considered a privilege reserved for royalty to be allowed a visit. As the lift doors opened and Krystal stepped out, she couldn't help but be impressed by the grander of the lobby. It was a high ceilinged affair, and on one portion, there was a mural of sorts, depicting four original Wolfen starfighters flying at full boost through empty space. The depiction was wonderfully detailed, and under the cockpits Krystal could see the original Star Wolf Team as young men. Leon and Wolf looked the same as they always did, although much younger and cockier. Leon wore a manic expression, and a sly smile graced Wolf's mug. Pigma was depicted counting a stack of money in his hands. He was a lot thinner than the only times Krystal had seen him, but he was still as sleezy looking. Andrew Oikonny, Andross's nephew, was a cocky looking kid, not much older than 15 or 16. His face was one of a spoiled rich kid, and his eagerness and pride were all too apparent.

The floor directly under the mural was indented and in the center was a large fountain. Krystal's eyes widened in shock and horror, and she left Panther's side to stand directly in front of it. The fountain, like the mural, was more or less a representation or Star Wolf, though this one was much more symbolic. Pre-evolved animals prowled a mountain-like rock wall. At the base, a monkey was laughing and beating a tiny toad on the ground without mercy, a look of cruel pleasure plastered on its face. The toad's face was all too familiar to Krystal's eyes, and she had to choke back a gasp of angry sorrow. Water gushed from the toad's screaming mouth like blood, and a baseball cap lay floating on the water, brim up. Beside them, the limp form of a frog was clearly visible as well. On a rock not too far from the monkey, a vixen worried a terrified looking hare, water gushing from where the fox's teeth were lodged in the its neck. Further up, a Panther was sniffing a rose, while under his paw the remains of a feline animal oozed water down the fountain. On the opposite side, a large pig was examining a enormous jewel, while simultaneously squashing a rabbit under his rotundus behind. On a withered tree stump, sat a chamaeleon, who was eyeing the carcass of a falcon. And on the very top, a one-eyed wolf howled at the moon. Three fox's lay beneath his feet.

Cold blooded hatred welled up inside Krystal. This statue's message was loud in her ears, and she couldn't stand it. The primitive and gruesome restatement of her team's demise at the hands of Star Wolf was unbearable. Tears stung her eyes as she looked over each body again. Slippy, Amanda, Lucy, Katt, Peppy, Falco. Her eyes found each one in turn, finally resting on the forms of Fox and herself and.... Krystal couldn't quite figure out who the last fox was. Maybe she would remember later, right then, she couldn't care less.

"Ah, do you like the fountain, my dear?" Panther asked coming up behind her. Krystal, despite being much disturbed, did her best to regain her composure. Wiping the tears from her eyes, she put on her best smile.

"Yes. It's very beautiful. It's a little confusing though, what does it mean?" Panther gave her a knowing nod.

"Surely you've heard of the Star Fox Team?"

Krystal screwed up her face to give the impression that she was having trouble remembering. "They...were Star Wolf's....rival team?" She looked at Panther inquiringly, and Panther nodded.

"Correct. And they were rival's most formidable, indeed." Panther's eyes took on a reminiscent glaze. "We did battle several times over the course of many years. Of course, when I say "we," I mean Star Wolf in general. Some of us, like Regina for example, only had the pleasure of matching wits with our Star Fox counterparts a few times. While others made an art out of it!"

_Is that what he calls it?_ Krystal thought.

Panther's eyes returned to the present and he waved his black furred hand at the fountain. "But as you can see, our final battle proved us the better team."

Krystal felt her anger simmering under the surface, and she changed the subject. "I'm sure Lord O'Donnell wanted to show that concept in this depiction, yes?"

To Krystal's surprise, Panther shook his head. "Actually, Wolf didn't commission this, I did." Krystal was taken aback.

"But surely he asked you...!" Panther continued shaking his head.

"No. Wolf had nothing to do with it. He's never been much on appearances. Decoration is usually my area of expertise." Panther looked up at the statue. "Curiously, Wolf wasn't as...enthusiastic as I expected. In fact, he seemed almost angry when he first saw it. Everyone else seemed to love it, but Wolf.... He refuses to look at it."

"Why?" Krystal was generally curious now. "This fountain is a perfect representation of Star Wolf's superiority and ruthlessness! Why would Wol– I mean, Lord O'Donnell, be offended by it?"

Panther shrugged. "I'll be damned if I know. Probably the same reason tha—" Panther stopped mid sentence, catching himself. Krystal's ears perked, and she looked piercingly at Panther.

"Reason that he what?" Panther's face flashed with nervousness for a second, then returned to it's Don Wuanish expression.

"Nothing! Just forget I mentioned it! Come, my quarters are this way!" Taking Krystal by the hand again, he pulled her along to the right, down one of the 10 hallways that branched off from the main area. Krystal didn't mention the subject again, but her brain was already working on the problem of Panther's near slip-up. What had Wolf done that could have any connection to his dislike of the fountain?

Panther stopped in front of the door to his room and slid his card through it. The door hissed aside, and he ushered Krystal in with a bow. "Welcome to my humble abode." he purred. Krystal stepped over the threshold and Panther followed, the door hissing closed behind them.

Panther had pulled out all the stops on this one. The plaza in the middle of the spacious room was occupied by a circular table with an ornate rose tattooed into woodwork. It was lit by candle and starlight only, and the room glowed with a deceptive warmth. The dinner itself was a golden brown gazelle, which she supposed was one of Panther's favorite dishes. In the fireplace a cheery fire crackled merrily.

Panther grinned and showed Krystal to a high-backed chair at one end of the table. He slid the chair out for her, and quickly took his seat at the opposite end. His yellow eyes gleamed in the candlelight, looking into Krystal's jade ones. The vixen smiled and did her best not to let the loathing she felt seep into her stare. He raised a glass of red whine in toast.

"To tonight, may it be a enjoyable and "profitable" occasion for both of us." He grinned over at Krystal who raised hers as well. The two tipped back their cups and drank the toast down. Wiping her mouth with her napkin, Krystal reached discreetly into her hair, removing a small tablet she'd hidden for later use. Katt had supplied it, and she guaranteed that it would neutralize the effects of any knock-out drugs that Panther might have slipped into the wine. Using what was left in her glass, she swallowed down the pill.

"I hope you enjoy gazelle," Panther purred. "It is a personal preference." The feline cut off a small piece and popped it into his mouth.

"I've never tried it," Krystal said truthfully. "But it looks delicious. Did you make it?"

Panther chuckled and shook his head. "No, no. I had it prepared by Star Wolf's personal chef. I am a skilled cook," He boasted. "But not that skilled!"

Krystal began chewing on the meat. It was rather like chicken. Tender, white meat. She almost enjoyed the taste and she quickly scooped up another mouthful.

Panther watched her eat, sipping wine from his cup. It was a little unnerving to just be watched eating. Krystal could feel his eyes wandering across her body. Through his thoughts she determined where he was looking the most and had an urge to throw her fork at him. His mind kept wandering back towards his bed, but a strange patience calmed the urges with ease. He'd clearly done this before, many times. It was quite like old times again Krystal thought amused. She'd been around this barbecue several times, and it never changed. Panther still took the romantic path, trying to woo and seduce her. "Make her come to you," was his style. He'd be patient, complimentary, and respectful, then when the girls were safely between his claws, that's when he made his move. Even though he was predictable; however, Panther got results.

"So," Panther said in a non-calanthe tone. "Tell me about yourself."

Krystal gave him an appraising look, swallowing a piece of meat. "What do you want to know?"

Panther's eyes never wavered as they gazed at Krystal. "Well, for starters, where are you from? Corneria, I presume."

Thinking back to the fake history she'd been thinking up for almost 6 years, Krystal answered, "Yep. Though that's a black mark on my character in The Great Emperor's eyes." Panther chuckled.

"Your secret's safe with me. Assuming it is a secret." Krystal gave a deceptively sweet smile.

"Thank you."

"What were you on Corneria?" Panther prompted curiously.

Krystal sipped on her wine glass, which she'd refilled herself. This was a little trickier. "Just a working girl. But not in the way you're thinking!" Krystal replied to Panther's raised eyebrow. "Waitress, clerk, anything that could keep me going. After all, I had a family.

Panther's eyes twinkled and a smirk crossed his black face. "A family?"

Krystal's eyes darkened. "Yes. I had a husband in the Cornerian military, and 2 kits." Krystal let her eyes drop to back up the lie, but she was still genuinely sad. "My husband died in the attack on Katina, and my kits...." Her voice trailed off. She returned her eyes to Panther. His expression had not changed. "Well, they died soon after."

"In the attack on Corneria?" Panther said quietly. Krystal gave him a hard look.

"Yes." Panther's emotions did an odd little twist. He felt almost guilty at the news. His team had cleared the way for Venom's troops, leaving the planet defenseless against Venom's bombers. There was silence for a minute, then Krystal continued almost as if nothing had happened.

"Anyway, I found out I was pregnant a few days after my husband's death. I was lucky enough to get away with my newborn, and I made straight for Venom."

"A wise move." Panther growled sympathetically. "If you'd attempted to flee the system, Venom's ships would've had to shoot you down." There was silence for another few seconds. "What did you do when you arrived? It must have been hard to get citizenship, considering your background."

Krystal could feel Panther's guilt building beneath his fur. She almost felt sorry for him. He was having to deal with things that he usually shut out of his mind, horrible atrocities that he'd committed, and it was crushing him. Still, his guilt was more leverage she could use against him. "It was," Krystal nodded. "We had to renounce Corneria and its leaders, as well as Star Fox. Also, Cornerian immigrants had to pay a toll to enter Venom's atmosphere, and our taxes are much higher than any other group." Krystal stared determinately at her plate, feeling Panther's heart bleeding for her. _How'd a softy like him ever make it onto Star Wolf?_ she wondered.

"So, I eventually got an apartment in a slum city outside the capitol. Cornerians aren't aloud inside, after all. But I was having trouble finding a job that could pay the bills."

"So you became a bounty hunter?" Panther finished for her.

Krystal nodded. "Yes. Bounty hunting pays the bills."

"How'd you balance your responsibilities as a single mother and still manage to hunt?"

Krystal shrugged. "Probably just luck. It's luck that's got us this far."

Panther was silent for a moment then asked, "How'd you meet your husband?"

Krystal's mind raced to find a good answer to the question. Finally she enquired, "My first or second husband?"

Panther's eyes widened slightly. "You had two husbands?"

Krystal nodded. "One on Corneria, and one on Venom."

Panther contemplated this for a moment then said, "Both."

Krystal tilted her head to one side in fake reminiscence. "Well my first husband, I met at the academy. He was studying to become a pilot, and it was just cheaper for me to get my education there. I suppose I met him at a roommate's party." She paused to take a bite of gazelle and to gauge Panther's reactions. "We dated for about 5 months, then got married." Deciding to play a little closer to the chest she added, "There was a little trouble with one of my old boyfriends, but in the end it worked out all right."

Panther let out a small chuckle. He was clearly remembering his version of the incident. "Yes, I once had a similar experience as well." Krystal gave him a quizzical look then shrugged.

"My second husband I married out of necessity. You know how it is when you have a new life style to get used to, almost no money, and a newborn kit to support, while simultaneously trying to work enough jobs to pay the bills." She took another bite and a sip of wine to wash it down. "We war refugees have to stick together."

"So your husband was another Cornerian survivor?" Panther enquired.

Krystal nodded matter-of-factly. "It was a registry office wedding. We both needed a financial partner, so getting married seemed the logical option." Panther leaned back in his chair folding his hands across his lap, tail swishing thoughtfully back and forth beneath the table.

"What happened?" he asked.

"It didn't last." Krystal answered. "Garland and I didn't get along, and we got divorced. So that left me in a pickle. With his support gone, I didn't have a leg to stand on." Krystal was monitoring Panther's emotions carefully. The guilt, while easier to manipulate, was deflating his sex drive, and if she didn't "sleep with him" it would mean she'd wasted a lot of precious time on something that wouldn't be immediately profitable.

Krystal quickly began changing the subject. "That was delicious." She said pushing away her plate and gulping down the last of her wine. She had no idea how long she'd been sitting there talking, so she asked timidly. "Uh, do you have the time?"

Panther blinked a few times and then walked over to a small clock on the mantle. He peered at the screen and turned back to the dark furred vixen. "7:45."

Krystal swore quietly in her mind. She was going to have to hurry this up if she was to make Teera's rendevous on time. Getting up from her chair she began her practiced "seduction walk," swinging her hips side to side, swishing her tail excitedly, and fixing Panther with her deep jade eyes.

"Well then," she half whispered. "Shouldn't we get started?" Indecision hovered in the black furred jungle cat and he began to shy away from her.

"Uh...I...uh...maybe we shouldn't do this." He stammered, his lust being squashed under the weight of his guilt. Krystal began to panic and quickened her pace, pushing out her chest so that her bust was displayed prominently.

"What? But I thought...." Krystal's voice was filled with hurt and confusion. She walked over and took the uncooperative panther by the hands. She looked up at him with large eyes. "Am I not hot enough for the Great Panther Caroso? Not cheap enough?"

"No, no, it's not that." Panther assured her. His mind was a whirlwind of confusion and he looked into Krystal's eyes, pity emanating from his core. "I just...." His voice trailed off and his gaze dropped to the floor as he turned away.

"Just what?" Krystal asked clasping his shoulder desperately. Panther didn't answer for a moment. Then quietly he said.

"I'm sorry for what me and my team did to you and your family! It was my job! I didn't think that one day I'd..." His voice trailed off. She could tell this wasn't going to be easy. She turned the sobbing Panther around and hugged him, the biggest display of regard she'd ever given her feline ex- boyfriend in their entire long history.

"It's okay." she assured him. "If I had anything against you, I wouldn't have come." She held the jungle cat there for a few minutes while he calmed down. Finally he wiped his face on his sleeve and sniffed.

"Thank you, Kursed." He took her by her shoulders and gazed in a kind way down at Krystal. "I don't deserve your forgiveness, but thank you just the same. You're truly remarkable." Something strange crossed his face. "You know, you remind me of another vixen I used to know." Krystal's ears perked a little. He was comparing her to herself. Krystal his once great love. More than a little flattered, Krystal smiled and fingered the button on his pants, gazing back into Panther's eyes and sending lustful impulses to his mind. She felt his old self resurfacing, and asked suggestively, "So— Are we doing this?" Panther's swaggering grin returned to his face and he began leaning down to kiss her.

Seizing her cue, Krystal moved her hand to his chest and bending all her energy into a tight energy ball, sent a jolt through his body. Panther gave a sharp jolt and collapsed onto the floor. Krystal picked him up and began dragging his limp form towards the bedroom. This was going to be a close one.

**So there's the next chapter! Hope it was worth the wait! Leave a review!**


	6. A The Escape PlanB Death of Kursed

**Well folks, it's happened. I, James Rodney O'Neill, have played and beaten Star Fox: Command! I feel disgusted with myself! I hate that game soooooo much as you know!! And yet, it was actually pretty fun! Gameplay wise only though. Damn Nintendo!!!! Anyway, still on writers block. Hopefully this chapter comes out alright!**

**Okay I'm done. Enjoy and, as always, PLEASE LEAVE A REVIEW!!!! tee hee. QUESTIONS WILL BE ANSWERED IN, INT WITH JRO.**

Chapter 7 Part A: The Escape Plan

Krystal awoke with a start as the doorbell buzzed. Krystal's eyes were heavy and her head was thickly knotted from lack of sleep. The vixen was still tired from the night's exertions, and had collapsed into bed only a few hours ago. She'd had to wait until all the other "guests" from Teera's party were asleep before tip-toeing out the door. Marcus slept peacefully beside her, undeterred by the loud noise. Krystal was amazed what her son could sleep through!

Rubbing her eyes and trying to swallow down the grumpiness she was feeling, Krystal stood uncertainly from the bed and began staggering towards the door. The buzzer sounded again with the same annoying static. "I'm coming!" Krystal yelled through the door fumbling with the controls. Somehow she managed to get the door to slide aside and glared at her unwanted visitor. He was a monkey with unruly hair and goatee. A regular Star Wolf grunt. The ape had a large bag over one shoulder and a PDA in his left hand. He stopped to admire the pajama clad vixen for a moment and Krystal had a hard time not kicking him and shutting the door in his face. "What do you want?" Krystal demanded impatiently. The ape seemed to come out of his daydreaming and looked at his PDA.

"Um...you..uh..Kursed?" he said uninterestedly. The disheveled head nodded curtly. Reaching into his bag he removed several envelopes and started sifting through them. At last he selected a long pink envelope and handed it to Krystal. The vixen looked at it in sleepy astonishment. She'd never gotten mail here before! The ape made a note on his PDA and nodded to Krystal. He turned and started down the hall.

Krystal ducked back inside and flipped the envelope over to look at the address. It had her name on it alright and her room number. The letter's return address informed her it was from Teera and Krystal tore it open with a slight feeling of elation. A plastic card fell from the hole and onto the floor at her feet. With an excited smile Krystal bent down and picked it up. At last! Not particularly caring but doing so as a matter of habit, Krystal read the note with which the card had been sent:

_Dear Kursed,_

_You were amazing last night! I can't remember having that much fun in a long time! You're quite the hell cat! Or should I say hell vixen? I would've told you in person, but you left before I woke up. I usually don't like it when girls hit and run, but in light of your "skills" I'm willing to let it slide. At any rate, here's your payment: 1 detention center access card, as promised! I really hope to see you again at my next little get together! There might be more I could do for you!_

_Very Thankfully Your's _

_Regi_

_P.S. That thing's no good with out the code! 49625_

At the bottom next to the signature, Teera had kissed the paper with lipstick. Krystal snickered to herself and tossed the letter in the wastebasket. She didn't need Teera's praise, just the card. Feeling extremely pleased with herself Krystal climbed back into bed with a yawn. She pulled the covers up under her chin and closed her eyes. Man, she was glad that this was her day off!

______________________________________________________________________________

_Krystal snuggled up closer to Fox. The morning sun smiled down on the two vulpines as they lay in the green grass of Corneria. Krystal couldn't recall ever being so happy and she sighed contentedly. In the distance, Krystal could see the spires of Corneria City, that world in which she'd found a new life. She was enjoying the feel of her husband's arms around her petite but muscular frame, his breath stirring her delicate face fur. They had been out here for who knows how long and still they lay. The whispering wind made her skirt rise a little, then fall. She would probably have grass stains all over her when they returned. Krystal didn't often wear dresses, but this was a special occasion. That was why they were out here in the first place. She and Fox had both agreed that they needed to get away from the city for their 2nd anniversary, away from the hustle and bustle, and the friends that annoyed them so much, but whom they still loved. And so, they'd walked all the way out here, to this field that stretched for miles. No communicators, no starfighters, no adoring masses following their every move, just Fox and her. _

_It was quiet moments like this that Krystal cherished most. Star Fox consumed most of their time, and it was just good to be with each other without the purpose being sex, though Krystal was having a hard time resisting the urge to jump her mate. Thoughtfulness turned her on._

_Fox hugged Krystal a little closer to him, kissing her softly on the forehead. "This is nice." he sighed happily, looking up at the lazuline sky. Wispy clouds floated in the breeze, adding character to the blue canvas._

"_Yes," Krystal agreed. "It's wonderful." The breeze was cool on her face and smelled of many wonderful things. Grass, flowers, trees, dirt, and most importantly, Fox. His smell was a little musty but with the lightest hint of aftershave. It enthralled her. She was so in love with him! After 2 whole years of marriage she still loved Fox McCloud as strongly as she did the day she married him! Krystal's smile widened even further and she propped herself up on one arm, looking down at her husband. Fox looked back and smiled as well. _

"_Happy Anniversary, Krystal."_

"_Happy Anniversary, Fox." Krystal leaned down and kissed her mate's lips, caressing each in turn with her own. Fox returned the kiss, and wrapped his arms around her back, pulling her into a warm embrace. This wasn't a sexual buildup, just pure love, shared by two foxes who adored one another. Krystal felt herself falling into a kind of trance. Some people say that love blinds people, and for Krystal McCloud that was a literal thing._

Krystal became aware that tiny hands were shaking her by the shoulder. Krystal groaned. The happy memory she'd been dreaming was slipping away, and she wanted nothing more than to return to that blissful state forever. How she hated her pitiful existence! She wasn't whole without Fox, with whom she had shared so much of herself. He had taken the best in her, and no matter how much she tried or how many members of Star Wolf she could kill or how many friends she regained, Krystal knew that she would still be empty. With these dreams of she and Fox's most cherished moments, she felt like herself again.

The hands continued their insistent shaking and Krystal pulled away and groaned again. "Mommy?" Marcus' voice cut sharply into her ear. "Mommy, wake up!"

Krystal curled tighter into the blankets. "Marcus, let Mommy sleep....!" Krystal didn't want to be up. She wanted more sleep. "Mommy was up very late last night and she needs her sleep!"

Marcus continued to shake her, much to her annoyance. "But Mommy!" the kit complained. "You promised to take me to lunch with Aunt Katt and Uncle Falco today!" Krystal grimaced. She did remember promising him that. Her son hadn't left this room for several weeks and was getting a little cabin fever. He had been so good and cooperative that Krystal thought he deserved a treat. But she had never expected to be this tired.

Krystal rolled over and opened her still sleepy eyes. "I know. And I will, but it can't be..." Krystal's voice trailed off as she saw the clock. 12:15 PM. She exhaled disappointedly. The world just wasn't fair today! Marcus' eyes were suddenly filled with concern.

"Mommy, are you crying?" Krystal blinked and put her hand to her cheek. Sure enough, tears were rolling down the silky fur. She was surprised at how they'd snuck up on her. She wasn't even feeling sad.

"Oh." Krystal chuckled, wiping up the water with her forearm. She looked apologetically up at Marcus and smiled. "It's okay, honey. I'm fine."

Marcus gave her a sympathetic stare. "Were you dreaming about Daddy again?" he enquired.

Krystal nodded thoughtfully. "Yes."

Marcus looked a little worried. "Was it bad?"

Krystal looked him in the eyes and shook her head. "No. It was a good dream."

"Why are you crying then?" Krystal shrugged.

"I don't know." Krystal leaned up and hugged Marcus. He was really all she had now. But what was wrong with that? He was kind, supportive, caring, cooperative, smart, and handsome, but most importantly Marcus was her son, and he was Fox's son.

"I love you, Marcus." Krystal said plainly. Marcus hugged his mother's neck, burying his face in her dark blue hair.

"I love you too, Mommy."

The only 2 surviving McClouds hugged for several more seconds, then parted. Krystal smiled and swung her legs over the bed. "Well, I'd better get showered and changed so we can go." Standing up, she helped Marcus down off the bed as well, and began walking towards the bathroom. "Marcus? Can you get dressed on your own?" she enquired of her kit. Marcus shrugged and looked sheepish. Krystal shook her head. "Is that a: "I do, but I want you to help" shrug, or is that a: "Yes, maybe" shrug. Marcus shrugged again, and Krystal chuckled. Her shower would have to wait.

______________________________________________________________________________

The courtyard for _Wolf's Place, _the restaurant Katt was working that day, was packed. It may have been loud, crowded, and a shifty place, but Krystal barely noticed. She was enjoying lunch with her 3 favorite people: Falco, Katt, and Marcus. It felt almost like the old days again.

After the team's reformation, the members of Star Fox had begun spending more time with each other, going out to bars or dinner together, playing poker and pool, and sometimes a trip to the beach. In short, they had become better friends, and enjoyed each other's company. Many things may have changed, but Krystal found she could still take that same pleasure from being with her friends, even after 6 years of isolation.

To look at them now, one might think nothing bad had ever happened to them. They were the picture of contentment. Falco was telling Marcus about some adventure or another, while the little fox listened with eager ears, and Katt was just chit-chatting with Krystal about this and that. Now and then there'd be a silent moment, but this was normal. It was one such time now and the group sat chewing on their food in a sated manner.

Suddenly, Katt's face seemed to brighten with an idea. Turning to Krystal she began, "Hey Krystal? Isn't your...?" Katt's voice trailed off and a sad realization crossed her face. She looked apologetically at Krystal. "Sorry. Forget I said anything."

Krystal looked quizzically at her feline friend. "What? What were you going to say?"

Katt moved a piece of meat around on her plate, looking sheepish. "It was nothing. I just remembered something that's all."

"Remembered what?" Krystal prompted her hesitant friend. "Something about me?"

Katt's thoughts were regretful. She had clearly remembered something she thought would be painful for friend to discuss. Yet, still Krystal was curious. Katt gave Krystal a long look then said, "I was going to say that your anniversary is next week." The table suddenly went silent as all eyes turned to the 2 ladies.

Krystal's brain clicked. Katt was right! She and Fox would have been married 9 years from that next Tuesday! Katt looked at Krystal like she might attack her. Krystal could understand why. Her 6 years dead husband was a touchy subject, and Katt was worried about hurting Krystal by bringing it up. Krystal wasn't sure how she felt about this reminder. Her anniversary had always been a sacred day for her. There were in fact several days in the year that she'd set aside to honor Fox. Holidays mostly, though some were simply days that she and Fox had done something special. Her first meeting with Fox, the night they'd defeated the Anglars, Fox's proposal even, and high on her list was her anniversary.

Krystal gave a small smile and the entire table relaxed. "It's okay, Katt." Krystal assured her placing a blue hand on the feline's shoulder. "Thank you for reminding me. Yes, our anniversary is next week, on Tuesday in fact." Krystal's eyes took on a bemused glaze as she leaned back in her chair. "We would have been married 9 years."

Katt smiled sadly at her friend. "I'm sorry, Krystal. I know how much you miss, Fox."

Krystal nodded her thanks and sighed."Thanks, Katt." Katt nodded as well and the table was silent again.

Falco rubbed the back of his neck, looking awkward. "So...uh..do you...have any plans for that night?" Krystal shook her head no. Not knowing how to proceed Falco pressed on. "Well...maybe...if your not too busy...we could...do something that night. You know...a special occasion deal?"

Krystal gave her former teammate a sad smile. "Sorry Falco. I usually take that day for myself."

Falco's face fell a little. "Oh, sorry."

Krystal gave him an apologetic grin and reached down to pet the top of her son's head. Marcus looked up at his mother with concern in his eyes. He was truly worried about her well being, and was trying to be sympathetic to her plight. Krystal gave him a small smile too. "It's okay. I'm fine, Marcus." The kit nodded, not entirely content with his mother's answer.

The thing Katt had feared was out. The very mention of Fox had killed the conversation and soon Katt and Falco began to check their watches. "Well, it's about time for me to get back to work." Katt sighed standing up.

Falco stood up as well. "Yeah, hate to say it, but I have to go, too." The avian gave a distasteful look. "After all, that garbage isn't going to haul itself." The look on his face clearly stated he wished that were the case.

Krystal nodded reaching into her jeans pocket. She produced several credit chips with which to pay for the meal. Katt and Falco would have protested, but the fact was that they had no money with which to pay. Krystal placed the chips on the table and gave them a reassuring smile. "It's alright guys. I really don't need the money that badly." Her reassurance did little to alleviate her friends' discomfort, but they nodded sheepishly.

"Aw! Do you guys have to go?" Marcus complained disappointedly.

Falco bent down and put a feathered hand on the pups shoulders. "Afraid so, kiddo." Marcus hung his head in disappointment, looking crestfallen. Falco took pity on the lonely kit; however, and pointed his muzzle up to look him in the eyes. "Hey, hey! Don't worry, Marcus! We'll come to see you, real soon!" The avian flashed a reassuring smirk, one Krystal thought reminiscent of the old Falco.

Marcus's ears raised slightly and his tail twitched a little. "Promise?" he asked, a look of desperation in his eyes.

Falco nodded and put a hand on the boy's shoulder. "Promise." Marcus hugged the blue-feathered avian around the waist, and in turn, Falco gave the boy's head a reassuring rub, letting slip some small manner of affection for his best friend's son.

Katt bent down and hugged Marcus too, tenderly kissing his forehead. "Bye bye, Marcus."

"Bye, Aunt Katt." Marcus replied with a small smile.

Katt hugged Krystal as well, not forgetting her blue-furred friend. "See you later, Krystal."

"Later." Krystal replied flatly. Falco and Katt gave each other a good-bye kiss and they both walked back to their respective jobs, Falco walking towards the down ramps, and Katt walking behind the bar of the restaurant.

Krystal watched her friends with a sad expression. When she saw them, it was almost like looking at her and Fox. Falco and Katt had gone through many of the things Fox and her had. They had both hid their feelings from the other, they had worked together, they had had fights! But they had also gone through more, more than Krystal could imagine! Growing up on the streets, gang fights, poverty! They had similar pasts, were part of the same gang, they were both incredible pilots, and cocky to boot, with stubborn streaks as long as Lylat's gravitational pull! They were perfect for each other!

Krystal and Fox had been extremely similar. They both had traumatic pasts, they had both been good pilots, and they were each too stubborn for their own good. They had loved each other secretly, flown as a team, and had a fight that had almost ended their relationship! There were many differences between the romantic history of their friends' and teammates' and their own, but the fundamental structure was the same. And yet, her friends were more or less happy, they had each other even if they had nothing else. Krystal was a 31-year old widow with a 5-year old kit, and Fox was dead. Her life was anything but happy.

The Cerinian vixen was just a little resentful of her friends' happiness, and secretly jealous. Why was it that they got to be happy, and she didn't? Why should they get a chance at a happy future? Why was it that her husband was dead? Why had Andross won? Why did Star Wolf get the winner's chair for murdering millions of innocent people, while the rightful heroes rotted in the dirt on Katina or on this god-forsaken space station? It just wasn't fair!

Krystal felt tears welling up in her eyes and quickly wiped them away, trying to hide her despair from her son. Marcus' eyes caught his mother's expression, and he rushed to his mother's side, climbing on top of a chair to give her a hug. Krystal sighed and embraced her wonderfully sweet offspring. "Thank you, Marcus."

"I don't like it when you cry." Marcus said. Krystal's mind flew back to a time when Fox had said those exact words to her. It had been the 10th anniversary of Cerinia's destruction, and the fox couple had been having a quiet dinner in their quarters. Fox was keeping the talk to a minimum, out of respect for Krystal's grief, waiting patiently for an opportunity to provide his wife with some comfort. It had been during one of the brief intervals of conversation that Krystal had broken down, sobbing into her hands. Fox had instantly been at her side, wrapping his strong arms around her shaking form. For the rest of the night he'd just held her while she cried, not speaking a word, letting his wife's sorrow wash out of her system. Krystal had finally cried herself dry and fell asleep in Fox's warm embrace, her husband following suit soon after her.

When they'd awoken the next morning, Krystal had thanked Fox for his understanding and love, kissing him deeply. Fox had work to do that morning, so he couldn't stay longer for any other kind of reward, and he'd changed quickly and prepared to leave. However, just before he left, he'd turned to Krystal in the door way and said: _"Krystal, I want you to promise me something," _he'd began quietly.

_Krystal was all attention and asked, "What is it?"_

_Turning back to her in the doorway of their apartment on Corneria, Fox said very seriously, "Krystal, I want you to promise me that from now on, you'll only cry 1 day a year." _

_Krystal's eyes widened in confusion and she walked over to take her husband's hands. "You want me to what?"_

"_Promise me, no matter what happens, that you won't cry more than 1 day a year." Fox's eyes were pleading, but dead serious. "Can you do that, Krystal?" His eyes were locked with hers and his grip tightened on her hands in earnest. "Please Krystal. For my sake?"_

_Krystal sighed resignedly, dropping her gaze for a moment before returning to her husband. "Okay, if it'll make you happy, Fox. I promise I won't cry more than once a year."_

_Fox heaved a sigh of relief and kissed her softly. "Thank you." he said turning to leave again._

"_Fox," Krystal stopped him._

_Fox looked quizzically in her direction. "Hm?"_

"_Why did you ask me to promise that?"_

_Fox smiled and gently rubbed her arm with his hand. "I don't like it when you cry."_

Krystal smiled at the happy memory. She had broken that promise so many times in the past 6 years, she'd forgotten she'd even made it. If he were alive, would Fox be disappointed in her for not keeping her promise? She didn't think so. Fox was never the type to hold a grudge over something so trivial. Besides, if he was alive she would have kept that promise without any trouble.

Krystal pulled out of her son's tiny embrace and rubbed his arm in a motherly fashion. "Come on, sweetheart," she said standing up. "It's time to head back."

"But Mommy!" Marcus complained as she picked him up and walked out of the restaurant. "I don't wanna go back to that room! It's boring!"

"Oh come on," she tempted with a small smile. "I'll tell you a sto-ry–!"

Marcus's ears twitched slightly. He always loved his mother's stories. "Well..." he said hesitantly. "I don't know..."

Krystal gave her son a astonished look, opening her mouth slightly. "You mean you... Don't want to hear a story?" She made a disappointed face, letting an air of hurt creep into her voice. "I don't know what to say."

"Wait, Mommy!" Marcus exclaimed, putting his tiny hands on his mother's shoulders. "I do want to hear a story! I do, I do! I'll listen!"

Krystal laughed and kissed his cheek. "Whew, you had me worried for a second." As they walked down the ramps leading to the lower level, Krystal smelled a familiar stench wafting up to her nose. Marcus sniffed and wrinkled his nose in disgust, covering it with both hands. "Ew–! What's that smell?" Krystal immediately recognized the odor, it was the same one she'd smelled the day of her arrival on Sargasso Space Station! Quickening her pace as best she could, she peered down into the empty gloom of the lower levels. Rasper was trudging slowly but surely towards the detention center. Behind him, 2 bulky guards carrying assault rifles were muttering to each other. Krystal couldn't make out what they were saying, but the thought patterns she sensed told her they were griping about their assignment as Rasper's escort.

Marcus looked down over the railing as well, nearly falling out of his mother's arms in the process. "Who's that Mo–?" Krystal clamped a blue-furred hand on his muzzle, silencing the young pup before he could finish his thought.

"Shh!" she ordered him, watching the melancholy procession nearing the entrance to the detention center. Rasper put a hand on the blast door to steady himself. As far as she could tell, the enigmatic creature was exhausted from the days work. In his mind she heard only the dull voice of instinct calling him to rest. Before the guard could pull his key card through the scanner, Rasper collapsed onto the floor and began to curl up to sleep.

"Get up!" the guard spat, kicking Rasper in the exposed back. Rasper yelped in pain and catching the guard in the meaty stomach with his own slime-crusted boot. The large-gutted guard grunted in pain, but didn't seem overly disturbed by the blow. "Why you!" he exclaimed hauling Rasper off the deck before slamming him back down. This evoked another yelp from the masked figure, and he tried to back away. "I'll teach you to kick me!" the guard barked cracking the butt of his assault rifle into Rasper's forehead. "Come on, Morty!" the first guard said to the second. "Let's show Rasper here a few things in discipline!" The other guard grinned maliciously, raising the butt of his own gun. Krystal watched as the 2 guards beat the poor animal on the ground. His strangled sobs hurt Krystal's ears, made all the more heartwrenching when the sedation collar administered its smokey dose. The yelping became coughing, and the guards backed away for a moment to avoid the smoke. Krystal surveyed the wretched thing on the ground, revolted by the cruel treatment of the guards. His mask had turned a darker shade of black, the blood from his unseen wounds seeping through the fabric. She pulled away from the railing, shielding Marcus from the blatant cruelty below them. She was tearing slightly, feeling for Rasper and his plight. He was treated so unfairly!

"Come on." Said the first guard again. "I think that does it. He won't be trying anything like that again, now that we've given him a firm thrashing!" Krystal heard the woosh as the blast door drew aside to let them pass. "I can't believe he'd do this twice in one day!" She heard Rasper's labored breathing, and the friction as they dragged him through. He gave one final rail and the blast door closed again, blocking out any sound from within the detention center.

Krystal breathed an inward sigh of relief, glad that the ordeal was over. Of course for Rasper that nightmare would continue. It would continue until the day he died unless she could find a way to help him! She felt a sort of kinship towards him. They'd both suffered through a lot. They shared the pain Andross's return had wrought upon the Lylat System. They'd both lost everything at the hands of Star Wolf. Of course, they'd each suffered in different ways. Rasper's was more physical pain, rather than the constant emotional torment Krystal endured. Rasper however had the benefit of being unaware of his situation. He was drugged 24/7, and so was enjoying a peaceful slumber inside his own mind. All the things about his personality were hidden behind that grey curtain of sedation. If only she could get passed it!

Krystal was roused from her revelry by the sound of soft crying. Marcus was teary eyed, and mewling softly. Krystal nuzzled the back of his head as the vixen pulled her son into a tight hug, trying to soothe the anguish he was feeling. "It's okay..." she cooed, shifting her weight from one foot to the other in a rocking motion. "It's okay, Marcus. Just relax."

"I...I felt...." Marcus sniffed. "I felt them kicking me! I felt what he felt!" Marcus' cheeks were wet against her shoulder, and his tiny arms clung to his mother's neck with desperation.

"I know...I know.." Krystal shushed him, brushing his back with 1 hand. "I felt it too. But it's alright! Just try to block it out."

"I...I can't..." Marcus sobbed. "It hurts too much!"

"Focus on me." Krystal advised, trying to become the anchor her son needed by clearing her mind of all negative thought. "Focus on my feelings only, and let the rest of those thoughts fade into the background."

Marcus continued to cry but did as she asked, latching on to her mind like a man in the middle of the ocean holds on for dear life to a passing piece of driftwood. Krystal's serenity seemed to calm him because his crying soon began to soften into the sniffles, and soon he was sleeping peacefully on Krystal's shoulder. Krystal smiled as she felt her son slip into unconsciousness, continuing to walk down the hallways of the third floor. It didn't take long to reach her own door, and she opened it with a swipe of her key card, and a quick tapping on the input pad.

Once inside, she laid her slumbering son down on the bed. Despite having only awakened a short time before, Marcus had exhausted himself with all the sobbing and crying. Krystal pulled the still unmade blankets over his small form, kissing him softly as she would when she put him to bed at night.

Walking over to her computer, she slumped down into her chair and placed her head in her hands, sighing exhaustedly. Her long blue hair fell down over her like a curtain, obscuring her behind a tangle of shiny locks. Krystal pulled the hair out of her eyes and tucked it behind her ears. How she hated long hair! It was hard to deal with, it didn't do anything for her appearance, and it got in the way at the most inopportune times! And the color! Dark blue was so dull, boring, and unattractive! Krystal wished more than ever that she could let her fur return to its natural shade or rich sapphire! To no longer be Kursed, a bounty hunter from the planet Corneria with no past, but Krystal McCloud of the Star Fox Team, wife of Fox McCloud, hero of the Lylat system!

Her eyes were red-rimmed from all the tears she'd been rubbing away with her hands. She sniffed loudly and closed her eyes. She was so tired! She didn't think she'd ever been so tired! The exhaustion was partly due to not getting enough sleep the previous night, but mostly it was because of the horrendous amount of emotional baggage she was carrying. How she longed for things to go back to how they had been before all this mess started! She longed to be back aboard _Great Fox III_, listening to Falco making wise cracks at Slippy's expense, and watching the toad respond in kind. Studying ROB as he made numerous calculations, training with Lucy and Amanda, chatting idly with Katt in the feline's room, and most of all, being with Fox. Smelling the scent of his fur, feeling his touch on her skin, being in his presence, seeing him smile affectionately at her, or just looking out at the stars together! She missed everything about her old life! Whether it was flying missions, to hanging out with her friends, or making love with Fox in the small hours of morning. Her life today was garbage! A prisoner of Star Wolf, the very team that had caused her so much pain and suffering, local whore, and waitress at the various joints on Sargasso Space Colony. Her husband dead, all but 2 of her friends brutally murdered, and unwilling subject of a deranged dictator who she'd thought long dead! The only comfort she could take came from Marcus. All the love she had left was for him, but even that didn't satisfy her the way it should.

Krystal hadn't felt this empty since Fox forced her off the team, and left her on Corneria nearly 12 years ago! It had been so long, but Krystal still remembered how bad it'd felt to be all alone in the universe. It had nearly driven her insane! Those two years of separation from the only man she'd ever loved, and the only family she'd known since Cerinia's destruction, had been a living hell! Luckily, Peppy had been there to help, and, as much as she hated to admit it, so had Panther. He'd provided an outlet for her negative feelings, and he'd been there for her when she needed to have social interaction. She'd been terribly vulnerable, and she sometimes marveled at how close she'd come to giving in to her despair and joining Star Wolf. If Panther had been the slightest bit purer, she might have done something she would have regretted the rest of her life, whether it was having sex with Panther, or simply letting her revenge take precedence. Of course that would have screwed her for sure! She'd have never known how sweet Fox could be, how gentle his touch was, or how much he loved her. She wouldn't have Marcus now that was for sure! She'd been very lucky now that she thought about it. It was just a moment's hesitation that had caused all this to happen! If she'd just acted sooner! It was her own fault! Andross never would have returned if not for her!

Krystal got up from her chair and looked out of the viewport in the kitchenette. Lylat glared a bright shade of orange in the distance, illuminating the space outside in shadowed relief. Krystal adjusted the setting, and the glare softened. She would make amends somehow! She would undo all this if she could, but since she couldn't she'd have to atone for her sins. She would defeat Andross, have her revenge on Star Wolf, and live happily ever after with Marcus on Corneria, which she would make it her life's work to restore to its original beauty.

_Just you wait Fox! _Krystal thought. _I'll make you proud. I'll be a good mother, and the savior you once were! And I'll start by getting Rasper off this station. I can't leave, but at least I can make sure he gets away safely. This'll be the beginning of my atonement._

Krystal turned away from the window and walked to the door. She slid on her overcoat, concealing the blaster pistol Rasper had tossed her nearly month ago in an inner pocket. She opened the door and walked out into the passageway, heading for the upper decks. As she left, she intensified her thought patterns to explosions of thought and images, leaving a message for Marcus when he woke up where she'd gone. She needed to spring Rasper as soon as possible, and for that she'd need a ship. And to get a ship, she'd need a pilot for Rasper to impersonate. When he came to his senses and she explained the situation, she'd give him the necessary instructions to fly the ship, imbedding them in his mind with her telepathy. It was a lot simpler than some people would have thought to get off Sargasso.

Krystal walked to the elevator, and selected the 5th floor as her destination, swiping her key card through and inputting her code. The elevator zoomed to life, speeding its way to the 5th level with incredible ease. There was a slight pinging sound and the doors slid open, revealing a stretch of hallway identical to the third floor. As Krystal walked, hands in her pockets, she scanned the numbers on the doors, trying to find a certain one. It was a few minutes before she found it. 24567. She took a deep breath and exhaled sharply. Reaching into her inner coat, Krystal withdrew her pistol and adjusted the setting, making sure it would kill on contact.

Krystal was more than a little nervous. She hadn't done this in 6 years, and even when she had, it'd never been face-to-face. She took a moment to calm herself, breathing deeply, her long blue cascading over her shoulders. When she finally felt ready, she reached over and buzzed the room. Inside there was loud rustling, and then footsteps approaching the door. Krystal quickly re-hid the pistol in her coat pocket and put on her sexiest smile.

The door opened, and there stood a gray avian, clad only in a pair of red briefs. His mug was somewhat urked at being disturbed at whatever he was doing, but when he saw who it was, a crafty smile split his beak. "Well, well..." the avian said, leaning up against the door frame. "What have we here?"

"It's been a few days Frionel." Krystal said sauntering a bit closer to the nearly nude avian. "I was beginning to think you'd forgotten me."

"Nah, Kursed!" The avian said smirking lustfully at the vixen. "I just needed some companionship, and well, you were a little bit expensive."

Krystal plastered on a hurt face. "Oh, you poor man." she said drawing even closer. "Well, how bout I give you one on the house? For old times' sake?"

Frionel grinned more impishly than before. "Well, maybe..." he teased as he pretended to consider it. "If you wouldn't mind sharing me with another girl?"

Krystal's resolve wavered for a moment. She hadn't planned on 2 people! It was one thing to kill a ruffian who had little to no regard for women as anything but sexual gratification, but quite another to murder an innocent girl just trying to make a living. Krystal didn't want to, but it was what was necessary. "No problem." She purred walking past the grinning avian into the room.

Danni was laying under the covers in the shabby little apartment's queen-size, her fur a little rumpled from the previous minutes' activities. Krystal felt another twang on her heart strings. This was one of the girls she worked with, one that she understood, not a stranger who she could kill at a moment's notice. The door swished closed behind them and Frionel came up behind Krystal to look at the brown-furred vixen staring up at them, trying her best to hide her exposed front from Krystal's eyes.

"Kursed?!" Danni's eyes were wide with a sort of panic. Krystal's presence clearly seemed to affect her. "What the hell are you doing here?!"

"She's gonna join the fun!" Frionel greedily explained, pulling his briefs off again and revealing his stiff rod to both girls. He walked over to the bed and pulled the covers away from the slightly more timid vixen, exposing her perky breasts. Krystal had the urge to look away, but resisted, staring the other girl full in the chest. She had to keep up appearances.

"But I–!" Danni began covering herself with her arms.

"Don't worry!" Frionel crooned, rubbing his meat against her thigh. "I'm gonna double your money for this!"

Danni struggled with that for a few moments, teetering on the edge of flat out refusal. Her mind was confused by Krystal's sudden appearance, and the younger vixen wanted nothing more than to bolt. She gave a few mewls of indecision, but ultimately she resigned herself to her fate and spread her legs to allow Frionel entry.

The avian chuckled maliciously and dove forward, digging himself into her velvety fur, making her moan loudly. Krystal tried not to let her revulsion show, but she really hated seeing her co-worker violated in such a manner. It was consensual, but Danni was obviously not enjoying herself. Her emotions were not even remotely akin to what Krystal felt when she made love to Fox. Instead of ecstasy, Danni received only pain from each thrust, regret pervaded her every thought, and her tail was tucked beneath her in shame of what she was participating in.

Krystal's heart bled for her. There were so many girls on the station in similar straights. Hell, by all appearances, Krystal was in that same situation! Except Krystal's was only an act she'd invented to achieve her own goals, she put her patrons to sleep and made them dream sex with her while she walked away with the profit. Danni had to go through every second of violation every time, just to earn her way!

Frionel looked back at Krystal with a greedy glint in his eyes. "What're you waiting for Kursed? Come join the party!"

_That's an excellent idea._ Krystal thought. _What am I waiting for?_ Walking swiftly over to the bed, Krystal placed a hand on Danni's head. The brown vixen's eyes turned to meet Krystal's. For a brief moment they shared eye contact, then Krystal released her telepathic jolt. Danni's eyes rolled into the back of her head and she stopped moaning, going limp beneath Frionel's raging cock.

The avian gave a gasp of displeasure as the girl lay unconscious on his bed. "What the hell–!" He never finished the thought. Krystal had placed a hand on his head, and closing her eyes in concentration, she flung herself at the bird's mind. She was searching for his access code. Being a pilot, he'd have access to the flight deck, and a ship to fly, and those were things she'd need to get Rasper off the station. The process could have been painless, if she'd gone a little bit slower. As it was, the excruciating pain in his head caused the avian to cry out, unable to clutch his head in pain because of Krystal's hold on him. Krystal ignored the shrieks, and continued her search, peeling layer upon layer of memory like an onion. It didn't take as long as she'd anticipated, and she withdrew her hand from Frionel's skull. The avian began clutching his head, collapsing into the fetal position on the bed beside Danni.

"Kursed! What the fuck are you—?" He never finished that either. There was a loud blasting sound as the green laser fire from Krystal's gun connected with the avian's head. With a short cry, Frionel relaxed, his eyes blank and staring. Krystal collapsed into a chair. She had just killed someone! And not just in an Arwing's pilot seat, but face to face! Krystal was a little shaken, but she soon forced it to pass. Turning her attention to the 2 figures on the bed, Krystal noticed that Frionel had ejaculated all over Danni's brown-fur. Krystal rushed into the bathroom and retrieved a towel that was hanging on the rack. It was still wet, but that was what mattered. Krystal bent down to the young vixen and began cleaning the dead avian's semen out of Danni's fur.

Once that was done, Krystal redressed the young girl, retrieving the clothes that had been cast onto the floor. She then proceeded to wipe the whole thing from Danni's memory, having compassion on the young girl instead of just killing her. Having finished that, Krystal began rummaging through Frionel's discarded pants, searching for his wallet. She soon found it, and made sure that the card she needed was inclosed. It was. Satisfied, Krystal stuffed it into her overcoat, and searched out the things that would connect her to the crime, items with her finger prints and footprints in the carpet.

When she had completed her work, Krystal was quite tired. She knew she couldn't afford to be so, and did her best to swallow it down. The blue vixen picked up the brown, and hit the door release. She walked out into the corridor, hefting Danni with ease, the door swishing closed behind her. Krystal breathed deeply, her mind swimming at what she'd just done. Her moral side, the old Krystal, was bugging her immensely. It had been wrong to kill Frionel like that! Whatever he'd done, he hadn't deserved to be gunned down in cold blood.

Krystal tried to shake those thoughts. She knew if she allowed them to get control of her, it might cause her mission to fail, and that was not an option. Krystal told herself that it was for the greater good, that Frionel's sudden and violent death would help things in the long run. Still, it wouldn't stop gnawing at the back of her mind, and that made it difficult to concentrate. Krystal focused on each step of her foot to distract herself, listening to each footfall echo through the long hall way as she walked back toward the elevator. Each sound was cast into sharp relief in her keen fox's ears. The heightened noise made her feel nervous as each sound was like a trumpet in her ear, but it did its job. The little moral voice in the back of her mind was drowned out, which gave Krystal the clear thinking she needed. She boarded the elevator, already formulating her next move.

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Krystal made a slight detour before heading down to the detention center. She dropped Danni by her room on the 6th floor, using her telepathy to retrieve the unconscious vixen's pass code. She laid the brown furred girl down on her mattress, pulling the blankets over Danni's unconscious form. Her apartment was less extravagant than Krystal's, but it was nice enough. The rooms were set up in exactly the same manner, only Krystal's had a window, as Danni's did not. The girl obviously had few visitors, as the floor was strewn with unwashed uniforms and empty carry-out bags. On the desk beside the dresser, there was a list of clients Danni did business with, much like Krystal's. Names and figures peppered the notepaper in organized little roles. Business must have been slow for the brown furred vixen lately, because the profit numbers were low. What caught Krystal's eye however, was a picture beside the computer. Krystal picked it up, and her mouth dropped open slightly.

The picture was set in a church, and light was shining down on two smiling vulpines. One was a handsome looking male fox, dressed in a traditional wedding tuxedo, who was beaming at none other than Danni. Krystal gave a small gasp as she beheld the photo, putting her hand to her mouth. Danni looked happier than Krystal had ever seen her! She was giggling into the camera, her smile spread from ear to pointed ear. The brown vixen was attired in a white wedding dress, much more traditional than Krystal's own.

Krystal was more than a little shocked. She would never have guessed that Danni had been married! Krystal looked back over to the bed, her jade eyes zeroing in on Danni's left hand. There was a gold ring on it alright. The younger vixen didn't seem like the type marriage was made for. She was a prostitute for crying out load! Danni must have had one devoted husband to let her do that! Of course, that picture could have been taken before the war. It was possible that Danni had once been happy, and this stage of her life had arrived with Andross' takeover. Krystal sighed sadly. Yet another person she owed big time.

Krystal slipped quietly out if Danni's room and re-boarded the elevator. She hit the button that led to the detention center, and slid the key card Teera had provided her with through the reader, typing in her access code. With a surge of adrenaline, Krystal felt the lift zoom to life beneath her feet. The floor numbers began to get small and smaller as the detention center was on the 2nd level. She tightened her grip on the blaster pistol in her coat pocket, squeezing the handle inside her fist. _Here we go._ Krystal thought as the lift halted and the doors opened.

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The guard at the check-point looked at Krystal lustfully as she approached. The dog's dark blue eyes raked over what he could make out of Krystal's figure, thinking the most disgusting things. Krystal knew this guy. Barkram was one of the men she'd "serviced." She had liked this one least of all the people she'd randomly selected. Trying not to seem put out by his presence, Krystal put on that seductive smile she'd used so much lately. "Afternoon, Bark." She addressed the brute by his nickname.

Bark grinned, exposing his large yellow teeth. "Hi Kursed. What can I do you for?" The brute quietly chuckled at his own joke, thinking the vixen too stupid to pick up on the sexual meaning. Krystal understood all to well; however, and resisted the urge to roll her eyes. The simple idea that Bark thought himself smarter than her was ludicrous!

"I'm just here visiting Falco and Katt Lombardi. Are they in?"

Bark scratched his head and typed in the names on the computer in front of him. "Felcoh is." he informed Krystal thickly, showing his complete incompetence by mispronouncing her friend's name.

"Good, I'm off." Krystal ran a hand through the dog's head fur as she passed. "Give me a call sometime." She felt Bark shiver pleasurably under her palm, chuckling to himself.

As Krystal started down the hall; however, Bark remembered something and called after her retreating flank. "Hey! You've gotta sign the register!"

"I'll sign in on my way out!" Krystal called back, turning the corner without making eye contact. "Ta!" Krystal heard Bark grumble and return to his chair, propping his feet up on the desk in order to take a quick snooze. _Idiot._ Krystal thought to herself. Now to take out the surveillance on this level. Krystal approached the directory on the wall of a fork in the corridor, checking the names printed over each. She located Security Control on the map, and plotted her course. She started to sprint down the many corridors, passing glowing shield after glowing cell shield. Most were empty, Star Wolf's business being in a sort of slump where prisoners were concerned. The cells that were occupied held some of the most vial looking people Krystal had ever seen.

At last she located a small door that led off from the main passage. A keypad was embedded in the wall next to it, as well as a keycard reader. Krystal took out her card and swiped it through, using Panther's stolen ID number to gain access to the enclosure. The pad flashed green, and the door slid aside for the blue vixen as she walked through. Inside was only a dim lighting that cast a pale light over Krystal's fur. In front of her was a short flight of stairs that led into the Security Control Center, where more pale blue light poured from. Caustiously, Krystal crept up the stairs, removing her blaster from her overcoat. Her boots made a soft clunking as she slowly hoisted herself up, taking the stairs two at a time. Her tail whipped around behind her in anticipation, undulating too and fro in random patterns.

When she reached the top, Krystal pressed her back against the wall, crouching down and expanding her mind into the next room. There was only one person on guard, which was a bit surprising to Krystal as this was one of the most important rooms on this level. An ape with brown fur was snoozing in a chair at one of the glowing consoles. She couldn't just kill him, so she decided on stealth rather than exerting herself further. Getting up from her position by the door, Krystal glided silently into the control room. She checked the guard to make sure was asleep, noting the empty gyn bottle beside his chair. She smiled evilly to herself. This man was going to get it when Wolf found out that Rasper had escaped while he was in a drunken slumber.

Krystal approached the console, locating the touch pads and necessary screens she'd need for her search. She had no parameters to give the search engine, so instead Krystal brought up a complete list of prisoners. There number of files she received was off the charts, and Krystal realized she hadn't filtered the results to accommodate only current prisoners. She narrowed her search and the numbers diminished significantly. Feeling much more confident, Krystal began scrolling through every file, searching for any file that could have been Raspers. Beside each name was a picture, and below that, prisoner information. It listed species, gender, height and weight, and was accompanied by a overall description of the prisoner in question. After searching through several pages of profiles, Krystal was becoming fet up. It was taking longer than she'd anticipated to locate Rasper. She'd have to narrow the search more. Returning to the search page, Krystal considered what she knew about Rasper. She'd need something more specific to tighten the parameters. _Well,_ Krystal considered. _He's got... brown fur._ She added that to the color box. _He's about... an inch shorter than me so..._ Krystal entered her own height into the computer. _I think it's a he._ Her fingers slid across the typing pad, making loud taps on the screen.

Krystal then came to the Species space and paused. She knew he had to be a lupine, vulpine, or canine. But which one to try? Since he wasn't quite tall enough to be lupine, and his tail was much too long to be canine, Krystal tried vulpine. The terminal flashed again and 4 names scrolled across the screen. Krystal read the first three, looking at each in turn and trying to judge if it might be him or not. It didn't seem likely. None of these men had a mask over their face, and there was nothing in their profiles to suggest why they would be made to. Nonetheless, Krystal decided to bring up the cameras in their cells to make sure. As she looked, the brown furred fox's paced up and down their rooms, stopping at their sinks and staring at themselves in the mirrors, using the bathroom, or just sleeping. There was no hint that any of them had ever been sedated. They all looked perfectly alert.

Krystal sighed and sat back in her chair. This was going no where fast. The guard next to her began to snore loudly and Krystal frowned at him annoyed. He was interrupting her train of thought! She considered stunning him to keep him quiet, but decided against it and looked back at the computer screen. She focused on her own thoughts, blocking out the noise around her so she could think clearly. Before long she was in a sort of trance, and was pondering how best to proceed. She could try the last name on the list, but that didn't seem likely. She had met Kenneth Lorny a long time ago. She didn't remember him exactly, but she knew he had been the leader of a gang Star Fox had taken down. Still, it couldn't hurt to look. She brought up the cell feed with a click of a button. Disappoint filled her as the feed came up. Lorny looked the same as the others.

Krystal smashed her fist against the terminal, swearing under her breath. The panel made a loud beeping sound and brought up a new search. This one had the heading: P6KE. The only result under it was a prisoner ID. Krystal considered it for a moment and shrugged. "What the hell." Krystal hit the key that opened the file. There was no information at all! No height, no weight, no name, no description! Just the prisoner ID and cell number. Krystal found this oddly intriguing. A file with no data? That was strange! A hunch suddenly struck her and Krystal brought up the cell's camera. There was Rasper! His face was still covered by the black mask, and his uniform had been changed. An IV ran down from his arm, and the collar seemed to be in a shut down mode. Krystal couldn't believe her luck! She quickly deactivated the camera in Rasper's cell, using the sleeping guard's key card. The screen turned to static, and Krystal dropped the shield that barred entry or exit from the stuffy little cell. Adrenaline coursed through her body and a exited grin cracked her face as she worked. Printing a map to the cell, which was at the very back of the level, Krystal planned her route and deactivated the cameras accordingly. Clearing the consoles of her fingerprints, Krystal gave the guard a quick pat on the head and turned towards the stairs. Before she left; however, Krystal removed the blaster from her coat pocket and aimed it at the guard. She loathed to do it, but if she was discovered, there couldn't be anyone here to track her, or sound the alarm to the rest of the base. Krystal gulped, averted her eyes and pulled the trigger. There was a slight gasp, then a thud as the guard's body hit the floor. Krystal sighed, replacing the pistol in her pocket. Feeling horrible at what she'd just done, Krystal skipped down the stairs, and sped out into the corridor.

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Krystal's heart was pumping as she stopped in front of the open doorway to Rasper's cell. She entered with caution, sniffing the air and curling her nose at the horrid smell. Being a garbage shoveler was a tough job, and the smells were overpowering. But as bad as the stench was, here it wasn't as foul as when she'd first met him. In fact, there was a strange scent, which Krystal assumed was Rasper's natural scent, that mixed with that of the garbage. As she sniffed, Krystal was startled by a sudden fluttering in her stomach. Giddiness threatened to overtake her and Krystal put a hand on the cell's sink to steady herself. The feelings subsided as quick as they'd come, and Krystal stood up again with a puzzled look on her face. "Where did that come from?" Krystal asked herself rubbing the fingers that had touched the sink together and glancing at them disgustedly.

Shaking her head a little to clear it, Krystal turned her attention back to Rasper. The mask on the unconscious creature's face rose in fell with its breathing, the droplets of water from his recent shower dribbling down the water tight fibers. Krystal's stomach began to flutter again from anticipation and she breathed deeply to quell her rapidly beating heart. She approached the single bed and bent down, bringing her eye level with Rasper. She withdrew the blaster pistol from her coat pocket and increased the intensity of the setting. The pistol vibrated slightly in her palm, and she placed the tip of the muzzle on the control bulb of the collar surrounding Rasper's throat. Krystal turned her head away so that the flash would not blind her, and pulled the trigger. There was a loud hollow blast, and a frizzing of electricity as the wires inside the collar were exposed to the open air, separated from the now disintegrated bulb. Krystal pulled the metal band from around Rasper's neck and threw it to the floor, where it made a loud clattering sound. The mask remained as it had been, the fabric having accustomed itself to the fit of its wearer. Krystal's hand reached forward and grasped the silky front of the mask in the place between Rasper's pointed ears.

Krystal knew she had to hurry, but for some reason, she hesitated, fingering the cloth for several moments. She'd suddenly had a strange wave of nervousness wash over her, and her hands were shaking with anxiety. Krystal was a little frightened by this inexplicable hesitance to unmask Rasper. She had been wanting to know for months what he looked like underneath the accursed thing! Why would her body react to the very thing she wanted in such a strange way? Krystal hadn't the slightest inkling of what she might find, but her brain was open to the possibilities. It was if some unseen person had whispered something frightening in her ear that made it impossible for her to achieve her goal. She clenched the muscles in her hand to try to get the shaking that had started to stop. She felt like she was at the climax of her journey, and concluded from this assumption that the nervousness she felt was only due to a subconscious desire for the mystery to continue. She swallowed, cracking her neck from side to side. The claws on her left hand again dug into the mask's fibers. Krystal gave the mask one firm yank, and it fluttered down to the floor, exposing Rasper's true face.

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**Okay. I here pause in my narrative for a moment to express my deepest apologies for being soooooo obvious about this. If you're smart, you must have figured this out a long, long, long, long, long......(Goes on like that for 5 or so days).....long, long, loooooooooooooooooong time ago! Most of the reviews stated that they knew where this was going from the start. Again, I apologize for not being more cryptic, and for not keeping this a mystery longer. I am so eager to get on with this story that I kinda rushed the unmasking of Rasper. (Also, I apologize for not giving him a better name.) **

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Chapter 7 Part B: Death of Kursed

Krystal nearly fainted as she looked in a galvanized stupor at a face she never thought or dreamed to behold again if she lived to see Lylat (Solar) go out. The male before her on the bed was vulpine. He was covered head to toe in chestnut colored fur, ears tipped with walnut. A long white streak ran from the base of his muzzle to the top of his head, and his muzzle was covered in white fur which trailed down his neck and, Krystal knew, to his chest and stomach. His fur was much shaggier than she remembered, and much less groomed, but she could never forget his face no matter how long she lived. It was carved into her brain and looked her in the face every morning with a cheerful "Good morning, Mommy!" Krystal collapsed onto her knees beside the bed, hands lying uselessly beside her. Her jade-eyes welled up with tears, obscuring her vision, still Krystal did not blink or move to brush them away. Instead, she let them roll in waterfalls down the matted fur on her cheeks. The vixen's breathing was quick and shallow, barely able to comprehend the figure before her. Her mouth was slightly agape and her eyes wide. All hints of drowsiness and exhaustion were gone, all that was left was a numb realization. Rasper, the enigmatic coughing creature forced into slavery to Star Wolf, was.....

"...F-F-Fox....?" Krystal's voice whispered, barely audible but loud in her own ears. Her husband did not respond, still deep in a chemically induced sleep. His face was bruised and bits of dry blood clung to his fur, which was still wet from the shower he'd taken unconsciously. The black mask that had obscured his face was lying forgotten on the floor behind Krystal, the silky black cords draped over the chinks in the deck. "Fox?" Krystal said again, a little louder this time. She barely wanted to say his name, lest he be spirited away from her again. The dumbfounded vixen lifted her hands off the floor and extended them gingerly towards Fox's face. They grasped the side's of the unconscious vulpine's head, shifting its weight from palm to palm in order to see the entirety of it. Still just as handsome, though older and worn out from the long years of working as a garbage shoveler on Sargasso.

Krystal's limbs were trembling as she pressed one ear to her husband's chest. She had to be sure that even if he was here, he wasn't dead. The second her head connected, Krystal heard the slow steady patterns of his heart. Krystal gave a gasp of pleasure, suddenly feeling the doubt that had been holding back the flood waters of her joy crumbling away. Her gasps became laughing sobs as the joyful revelation washed over her. Fox was alive!

Krystal was steeped in emotions she couldn't make sense of. Her mind was too distracted with the simple fact that Fox was here, alive and well, not dead as she'd thought for so many years. All the pain she'd endured had no cause, no meaning. If she'd been thinking clearly Krystal might have blamed herself for not searching for him when he'd disappeared, or even rushed out to confront Wolf about what her long lost husband was doing on Sargasso. But Krystal's mind was too bound in her own joyful reunion with her lover and husband, to put 2 and 2 together to make 4.

"Fox...Fox...Fox...." she sobbed over and over again in hushed tones. Her arms wrapped his limp body in a tight embrace, never wanting to release him from her arms again. After being separated for 6 years, it felt wrong that they should ever have to part in any way again. Fox lay still beneath her, his breathing deep and slow, totally unaware that his wife was sobbing just a few inches from his nose.

For several minutes, all Krystal did was sob, all too eager to let out her pent up loneliness and refill it with togetherness. But as always, her tears eventually ran dry, and she lay on Fox's chest sniffling and breathing heavily. The exhaustion from before had come back, strengthened by the sobbing she'd just finished. Her body was heavy with fatigue and she wanted nothing more than to fall asleep and not wake up for a very long time. It felt so good to be at Fox's side again, her head laid atop his chest, his heartbeat loud in her ears, and his chest rising and falling with every breath he took. How she had missed it all! Her jade-eyes began to drift closed and her breathing slowed to match Fox's. Alarms blaring in her head, Krystal gradually drifted off to sleep, feeling more at peace than she had in 6 years.

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Krystal felt herself being shaken by a rough pair of hands. "Krystal! Krystal! What the hell's the matter with you!? Wake up!"'

Krystal's mind was working at a slower pace than usual, and it took her a few moments to translate what was happening. Then her eyes shot open as she remembered the horrible situation she was in. Instinctively, she threw a sharp punch, nailing her, for lack of a better term, "assailant" sharply in the beak. Falco gave a yell of surprise and pain and staggered back towards the cell door. Realizing her mistake, Krystal jumped to her feet and ran over to the injured avian.

"Falco! I'm so sorry! I thought you were one of the guards!"

Falco rubbed his beak where the vixen's blow had struck him and said, "No, it's fine, it's fine! Just what the hell are you doing here?!"

"How'd you find me?" Krystal asked afraid there might be guards not far behind. "I mean, how'd you know I was here?"

"I heard the blaster go off!" Falco replied. "I thought someone was making a jailbreak and I was gonna help 'em out!"

"How'd you hear my blaster?" Krystal asked.

"My room's not too far from here," Falco replied looking impatient. "Now what the hell are you doing in here?"

Krystal was about to reply when a strange glee spread over her face. Falco looked at her confused at the self-satisfied smile that had broken over his friends lips. Krystal gave out a soft giggle, causing Falco's curiosity to deepen. He hadn't heard Krystal giggle in 6 years. Sure she laughed, chuckled, snickered, things like that, but she never giggled!

"What?" he asked as she continued to look at him. Krystal hugged herself around the waist and her head shifted down to the bed behind her, turning as she did so. Falco looked too and his jaw dropped open in shocked realization. Krystal giggled again and did a slight twirl on her heel. However, her giddiness was no longer a mystery to Falco.

"You've gotta be kidding me..." Falco said drawing closer to the bed. His best friend's body lay before him, still and peaceful. Falco couldn't believe what his eyes were telling him! "Krystal," Falco's voice was hoarse. "This is..."

"I know!" Krystal giggled.

Falco just stood there taking deep breaths as he tried to take it all in. Krystal stood next to him, staring lovingly down at her husband, as if he were a sleeping kit. "How long....?" Falco asked distantly.

"Just now," Krystal replied. "I came down to spring Rasper out of here, and I found out Rasper was Fox."

"Son of a bitch," Falco said amazed. "But, why is he here? How'd he get here? I mean, he was supposed to have been shot down––"

Falco's question was interrupted by Krystal's hand over his mouth. "Shh! Listen!" Both friends listened for a moment. Footsteps were echoing down the passageway! Krystal released Falco's beak and said, "The guards!"

"C'mon we gotta get outta here!" Falco said starting for the exit. Krystal remained where she was, staring down at Fox with determination in her eyes. Falco stopped outside the door and looked back at Krystal's erect figure. "Krystal? Let's go!"

Krystal bent down and removed the IV from Fox's arm, hooking her own arm around his back and hefting his weight so that he sat up.

"Krystal! There's no time!" Falco hissed checking the passageway for guards.

"I won't leave him." Krystal said matter-of-factly.

"You've got to!" Falco exclaimed beginning to get impatient. "Look, I know what you're going throu—"

"No you don't!" Krystal snarled, glaring daggers at the avian. "You don't have any fucking idea! I am not going to lose Fox again! I _need_ him! Marcus needs him! Lylat needs him! If and when we get out of here, if we're going to have any hope of defeating Andross we're going to need Fox!" Krystal's eyes were ablaze with anger and passion and Falco quailed beneath their fire. "And even if Andross didn't rule the Lylat system, I have been empty all these years without Fox! Right now, I want to chain myself, body and soul to Fox and never let him leave again! He would never abandon me, and I won't abandon him! I made that mistake 6 years ago and I paid for it!" Krystal's eyes were becoming tearful as she continued. "He's my husband, my mate, my child's father for God's sake! I can't live without him! So either he comes with us, or I stay right here and fight! Either way, I won't leave him again!"

Falco looked at Krystal. Her eyes were round and tearful, but the ferocity of her resolve was unshakable. The avian sighed. "You're right Krystal." He said hanging his head in shame. "I shouldn't have asked you to leave Fox. I was thinking about my own interests, and I didn't consider your feelings." Falco looked at Fox's unconscious face with regret in his eyes. "Some friend I am."

Krystal stood up from where she'd been, Fox draped around her like a coat. "Thanks, Falco. Now take this." Krystal removed the blaster pistol from her pocket and tossed it to Falco, who caught it expertly. "Watch my back while I get Fox to the elevator."

Falco nodded, gripping the handle between his fist. "Leave it to me!" He crowed, flashing his trademark smirk at Krystal. "I'll keep those guys off your tail!"

Krystal shifted Fox's weight on her shoulders, and smiled confidently at her friend. "Excellent. Let's go." Hefting Fox's unconscious body, Krystal dashed forward, surprising Falco with her speed and agility, even when carrying such weight. The avian shrugged, then darted after her, checking behind him for any sign of the guards.

______________________________________________________________________________

It wasn't long before the shouts of a search party began echoing through the corridors of the prison block, filling the feet of Krystal and Falco with haste. Fox, head lolling over Krystal's shoulder, groaned slightly in his sleep, causing his wife to look at him, worried he might wake up. It wasn't that she didn't want him to, it was just not the right time. When Fox awoke, Krystal wanted to be sure it was in controlled conditions and that the first thing he saw was her. And not the her that everyone else saw now, but the her she had been when he'd last seen her. Natural sapphire fur, short hair, jewelry, and clothes.

As they emerged from corridor leading from the elevator, Falco and Krystal stopped dead in their tracks. Two guards with blasters stood by the shiny lift door. The avian and vixen didn't have time to flee before the guards spotted them. The two grunts leveled their weapons at the pair, charging up 2 shots. Falco raised his own pistol and Krystal ducked behind him to shield herself and Fox from the deadly bolts.

One of the guards, Bark, spoke in a rough voice. "Halt! Set down your arms and surrender or we will shoot you!"

"_How do you want to play this?_" Krystal asked Falco telepathically. Falco gave a little jump at her voice in his head then answered.

"_Can't run away. They'd shoot at us and call for back-up. We need a distraction that will give me enough time to nail 'em."_

"_Like what?" Krystal asked._

_Falco thought for a moment. "You could–" he began._

"_No!" Krystal practically shouted inside her head. "Absolutely not, Falco Lombardi! I am not flashing my breasts!"_

_Falco jumped again as Krystal's voice echoed through his head. "How the hell did you— "_

"_I read your mind!" Krystal snarled._

"_Sorry! I was just trying to come up with something!"_

"_Well try again!" Krystal growled. "And this time, keep your mind where it belongs!"_

Falco thought again, this time taking longer. Krystal allowed his mind to do its own work and focused on the guards. They were both nervous, realizing who Falco was and fearing his reputation. Their fingers were clutched tightly over the blasters' triggers, a fierce red light glowing at the tip of the guns' muzzle. _Hurry up Falco!_ Krystal hurried.

_I'm thinking! I'm thinking! _Falco thought back.

_Well, "I'm thinking" that we don't have all day! If those others catch up with us, we'll never get Fox off this level! _

Suddenly, something in Falco's mind seemed to click, and inspiration flooded his mind. "_I've got it!"_ he exclaimed. "_Krystal? How much money you got?"_

Krystal thought for a moment. _"200 sp?"_

"_Outstanding! Give it here!"_

Krystal hurriedly reached into her inner pocket and removed her wallet, handing the chips to Falco. Falco waved the handful of currency at the guards, his expression cautious. "Hey! You two like money?" The question was a stupid one, but it got the guards attention. "Well, I got 200 sp here for you if you let us through!"

The guards seemed to take a moment to deliberate, taking their eyes off the avian for a split second. That was all Falco needed. He tossed the currency chips at the guards, causing them to drop their weapons, whose charged shots tore holes in the entrance walls, sending the guards flying off their feet. All Krystal heard was 2 quick shots, and the guards on the floor lay still.

"C'mon!" Falco exclaimed, grabbing Krystal by the arm. "We need to move before the rest of those goons show up!"

Krystal hefted the unconscious vulpine again and stumbled into the elevator, Falco sliding his card through and entering his access code. He hit the 3rd floor button and the elevator began to rise away from the search party.

Falco breathed a sigh of relief. "Whew! That could've been hairy!" The blue-feathered avian wiped his brow, pocketing the pistol, and looking at Krystal. "You hurt?"

Krystal shook her head. "Nope."

Falco nodded. "Fox?"

"Still asleep, but no injuries." Falco nodded again.

The lift doors opened, and the familiar corridors of the third floor were revealed to them. They walked in a quick march down the hall, heading straight for Krystal's room. It wasn't the best place to hide. When Wolf discovered who'd escaped, he'd know immediately where to go. Still, it was the only place they had for now. And there was still the fighter Krystal had "arranged" for. They could send that on its way and hope that Wolf would be fooled. It wasn't likely but it was their only plan.

When the trio finally reached Krystal's own door, Krystal turned to Falco and handed him Frionel's stolen access card. "Go down to the hanger bay," she instructed him. "Find Frionel's fighter and set the auto-pilot to take it to Corneria. That way, they might think Fox is headed there, to help with the war."

Falco nodded his understanding and Krystal shared the access code with him. "Good luck, Krystal." Falco bid her as he turned to go.

"And to you, Falco." Krystal returned swiping her key through the reader. "And thanks."

"Any time!" Falco grinned. "Just name your next kid after me, and we'll call it square!"

Krystal snorted at his joke and entered her access code, bracing herself for her son's flurry of questions. The door opened, and Krystal walked through, Fox still draped over her shoulders.

Marcus came running from the kitchenette, where he'd apparently been looking for something to eat. "Mommy! Where'd you go...?" Marcus' voice trailed off as he beheld the stranger his mother was laying down on the bed. "Mommy?" Marcus said running over to get a better look. "Who's that?"

Krystal smiled down at her son, tears in her jade eyes. Marcus looked back at her quizzically, not comprehending the emotions his mother was exuding. "Marcus, come here." Krystal said, squatting down, and holding out her arms to her offspring. Marcus complied and hugged his mother about the neck. Krystal clasped Marcus to her in a deep hug, rising to her feet as she did so. She swivelled to face the figure on the bed, she and Marcus looking down at Fox.

"Marcus," Krystal began, pride and joy in her voice.

"I'd like you to meet your father."

Marcus looked at Krystal with a disbelieving gape. "My..." His tiny voice trailed off as he looked back down on the man he'd never thought he'd meet. "Daddy?" Marcus' reactions were not like Krystal's, he did not cry or collapse against his mother's shoulder. Instead, he let out a squeaky laugh and tried to wriggle free of Krystal's grasp, trying to hug his father about the neck and wake him up.

Krystal understood his eagerness, but clamped a hand over his muzzle. "Shh, Marcus! Your daddy is sleeping!"

"Why?" Marcus asked, trying to understand. "Doesn't he want to see me?"

"Of course he will!" Krystal assured him. "He just needs to find out that you're here too. I have a plan. It includes Uncle Falco and Aunt Katt, and you, and me, and it'll be fun, I promise." Krystal began walking towards the bathroom, smiling deviously to herself. "And the first thing," She began. "Is to give you a bath!"

Marcus let out a groan as the bathroom door slid closed.

______________________________________________________________________________

The next several hours for Krystal were spent in the bathroom. She had a lot of work to do to prepare for Fox's awakening, which she knew was only a few hours away. She wanted to look normal for Fox, not wanting to show him Kursed, but Krystal McCloud, the vixen he'd fallen ears-over-tail in love with, and married. To achieve this, Krystal showered with dye remover, scrubbing herself raw to purge the ugly navy color from her tawny fur. It took a while, but the dye finally yielded to her sponge, streaming like blood from her body down into the tub's drain. After that, Krystal gave herself a rigorous shampooing, conditioning, and overall grooming, making her fur bounce and shine with silky luster.

After finishing her time in the shower, Krystal used a pair of scissors to cut her hair short in the bathroom. It wasn't the work of a master, but it was still passable by Krystal's standards, and it made her look like herself again. She dried off and made herself up in her finest make-up and jewelry, that is, the silver tiara and neckless from the years before her isolation. She opted to go with the black formal dress she'd worn the night before, ironing the wrinkles out.

Marcus did not escape grooming either, and Krystal soon had him scrubbed from head to toe, dressed in his best clothing, such as it was. He was not at all happy about it, and put up several fusses, all of which Krystal handled expertly with one story or another.

After her own preparations were complete, Krystal took Marcus, and ventured out to look for Katt and Falco, whom she found in deep conversation at _Wolf's Place_.

Upon seeing them, Katt jumped to her feet and ran over to hug them both, tears of joy in her eyes. Krystal explained what had happened, but didn't stay long after that. She knew Katt had questions, but for now, she didn't want to give answers. Krystal then cordially invited Katt and Falco to her home that evening if they were free. "I want everyone to be there to welcome Fox back." Krystal explained. Falco and Katt both agreed in the strongest terms, and promised their attendance. Krystal told them to "dress nice" and then walked back to her room with Marcus, not wanting to leave Fox alone for too long, lest he wake up.

It was 7:00 before they arrived, dressed in what they considered their finest garments. Falco sported his flight jacket and flight suit, the only piece of clothing he had other than his garbage uniform, which he flatly refused to wear. Katt wore a pink blouse that was cut across the chest and shoulders, the straps plainly visible, and a pair of tight black jeans that showed off her legs. Krystal outlined her plan for them, and gave them each an assignment to carry out. She knew that the half bag of IV Fox had been given would be wearing off soon, and she wished everything to be in readiness.

Katt did as she was instructed, and took Marcus out into the hall to wait for Krystal's signal, and to instruct Marcus in what he should and should not do. It was a little frustrating for the blue-furred kit, but he struggled through it, happy to be with everyone he loved. It was, after all, better to be uncomfortable with friends than comfortable and alone.

Falco took a seat at Krystal's desk chair, swinging his feet up on the desk and playing solitaire on the computer. Krystal moved one of the chairs from the kitchenette and placed it beside the bed. She took a seat and began her wait. _It won't be long now._ She thought.

______________________________________________________________________________

Krystal sighed and fingered her wedding ring, sliding the silver band up and down the shaft of her finger. The newly polished ring glittered in the lamp light, looking almost like it was smiling with shiny silver teeth. Krystal smiled and replaced it on her finger, sighing and inspecting the white filed and polished nails on her left hand. She found no mar in the coating of white paint, and looked at the clock for the third time in 5 minutes. The clock read: 8:21 PM. Krystal groaned slightly and hid her face in her hands. It had been nearly an hour and a half since Falco and Katt had arrived and Fox still hadn't awoken!

Krystal pulled on her fingers, popping them one by one, then cracking her knuckles to pass the time. Falco was now in his third game of solitaire, and the seemed nearly as restless as she was. From the hallway, she could feel Marcus beginning to tire, and Katt's impatience to get this over with. Krystal was inclined to do the same, but she had little say in the matter. Fox woke up when Fox woke up. She had no drugs to counteract the ones already inhabiting his system.

As she waited, Krystal pondered what Fox's reactions would be to this new world, in which Andross was supreme ruler of the Lylat system, most of the people he'd known were dead, they were all prisoners of Star Wolf, and he was a father. Most of the scenes she imagined were happy, full of tears and laughter at being reunited after so long! But for every good dream, there was one that was not so good. Scenarios where Fox would become distraught over what had become of the Lylat system, and blame himself, withdrawing so far into himself that he became a stranger to his own friends and family. Then there were those where Fox could not accept Marcus, and abandoned them because of his inability to cope with the pressures of fatherhood. All of them perfectly ridiculous, but none the less scary. Krystal subconsciously fingered her ring again, sliding the band up and down her finger.

Krystal scanned Fox's mind with her telepathy. His mind had been closed to her since she'd sprung him from prison, and she had been waiting for the opportunity to join her mind to Fox's and visit him in his dreams. To her joy, she found that the drugs had finally worn off, and Fox was sleeping a natural, dream filled sleep.

Krystal moved her chair closer to the bed, and put one hand on Fox's head. "Falco," She whispered.

Falco's head turned to face her. "What's up?" he said a little loudly.

Krystal put a finger to her lips and whispered. "I'm going to visit Fox in his dreams. Don't wake him. Be quiet until I come out of it, okay?"

Falco nodded and turned back to his game. "Make it fast."

Krystal nodded and closed her eyes, focusing her mind on Fox's. She felt a familiar feeling wash over her, and Krystal breathed deeply as she entered Fox's mind for the first time in 6 years.

______________________________________________________________________________

_Krystal became aware that she was in the same field as before. This wasn't a MMG so she found herself clothed, this time in a white dress that fluttered in the breeze. In the distance, she could see the spires of Corneria city jutting out of the ground in dark towers. The wind felt good on her face, and the grass soft beneath her bare feet. The clouds rolled by in wisps, doing little to hide the vast blue expanse above her head._

_Krystal glanced about for Fox, and was greatly joyed to see him a little ways off, lying in the grass, hands laced behind his head. She called out, but no response came. Krystal walked over to his relaxed form, beaming at his closed eyelids. She lay down on his right side, and wrapped her arms around his waist laying her head against his chest._

"_Hey," Fox greeted her, his eyes still closed._

"_Hey," Krystal replied._

"_What took you so long?" Fox enquired. _

"_Sorry. I was unavoidably delayed."_

"_Autograph hounds?"_

_Krystal didn't know how to answer the question. "No." She replied._

"_Peppy?" _

"_No."_

"_Slippy? Falco?"_

_Krystal giggled. "No."_

_Fox thought for a moment. "Buying an exquisite anniversary present for your handsome studdly husband?"_

_Krystal giggled again. "You might say that."_

"_Aw, what'd get me?" Fox asked wrapping his own arms around her shoulders._

"_Why don't you open your eyes and find out?" Krystal replied._

_Fox's head shifted to look down at her, and Krystal's looked at him. His emerald eyes locked with her jade ones, his face like the sweetest candy to her eyes. It had been so long since he'd looked at her!_

_Fox tilted his head and narrowed his eyes. "I must be dreaming." He said. Then a smile spread across his muzzle. "You look more beautiful than the day I met you."_

_Krystal giggled again and kissed him. It was a long kiss which she dragged out as long as she possibly could, passionate and loving. As pulled away, she looked down into Fox's smiling face. "As a matter of fact..." She teased. "You are dreaming."_

"_Ah." Fox laughed. "And you felt the need to visit me?"_

"_You might say that." Krystal smiled sadly. "To prepare you."_

_Fox gave his wife a quizzical look. "What do you mean by that?"_

_Krystal sighed and kissed him again, this time only lingering a few seconds. "You'll see. Now, wake up...wake up....wake up....wake up......."_

_The field around Krystal and Fox began to fade, the sky above them darkened to the blackest pitch, and the spires of Corneria City crumbled into the background as Fox truly woke up for the first time in almost 6 years._

______________________________________________________________________________

The first image to greet Fox's eyes, was Krystal's smiling face. There was something different about his wife from what he could remember though. She looked much older than he'd ever seen her, and her hair was somehow shorter. However, the Cerinian vixen had lost none of her beauty, and Fox was overjoyed to see his wife after so long.

"Krystal!" He croaked, astonished by the hoarseness of his own voice.

"Hello, Fox." Krystal's eyes had tears in them, and she wrapped her arms around Fox's shoulders as he leaned up to give her a hug. For several moments the couple just sat there hugging and caressing each other, happy to be reunited again.

When they finally broke apart, Fox pushed himself up into a sitting position on the wonderfully soft queen-sized mattress beneath him. The only bed he'd known for the past few month's had been a hard prison cot. Krystal smiled at him with so much joy in her expression Fox began to be a little worried. "You okay?" he asked his mate.

Krystal nodded. "I'm fine. How're you?"

Fox shrugged. "Alright, I guess." There was movement off to Fox's right, and the vulpine's head turned to see Falco getting up from his chair. "Falco!" Fox exclaimed trying to rise from the bed, but prevented by Krystal's arm.

"Hey, Fox." Falco replied. To Fox's amazement, Falco seemed to be almost crying.

"Falco!" Fox said smirking at the cocky avian pilot. "Keep it together man! There's no reason to cry!"

Falco gave Fox a half-quizzical look, and chuckled, wiping the tears from his eyes. "Oh, sorry Fox. I just..." Falco paused and gave a short sniff. "I'm just really glad to see ya, buddy." The avian walked over and actually hugged Fox, his tears wetting the shoulder of the vulpine's uniform.

Fox was more than a little weirded out by the whole situation. His wife and friend were both in tears. Understandable, since they had thought him dead, but weird nonetheless. "Hey, hey. Falco, buddy, it's okay man, really."

Falco backed off with a loud sniff. A little of his old swagger returning to his face. "Yeah, yeah, I'm fine. Just, uh, got something in my eye is all." Falco wiped his eyes and returned his gaze to Fox.

"So, Falco," Fox asked. "How was Katina?"

Falco gave Fox a quizzical look. "Huh?"

"When you got shot down. Wolf told me you and Katt weren't captured with the rest of us. Katina is heavily guarded you must've had a hell of a time getting back to Corneria."

Falco exchanged looks with Krystal. "Uh, we, uh, survived."

"Didn't lose your temper too much did you?" Fox teased.

Falco seemed very confused and turned to Krystal for escape. The vixen looked like she was going to say something, but Fox cut her off. "Okay, Krystal. How's the baby?"

Krystal nearly choked on her own spit. She hadn't expected that. "You know?" she said dumbfoundedly.

"Yeah," Fox replied taking her arms. "Wolf told me that's why you haven't been flying with Star Vixen." He looked her up and down. "Well, you don't look pregnant. Did you have the baby yet? What is it, a boy or a girl? I am so sorry I couldn't be there. I wanted to, its just Wolf said it was too dangerous!"

"What else did Wolf tell you?" Krystal enquired.

Fox was a little put off by the question. He wanted to know about his newborn son and/or daughter more than recounting what little information Wolf had been supplying him with over the last few months. "Nothing really. He's just been keeping me updated on how the war's going!"

"What's the last thing you remember?" Krystal asked.

Fox sighed impatiently. "I was in my cell and Wolf was giving me a drug that would keep me asleep for as long as it took for him to round you guys up!"

Falco and Krystal looked at each other and then at Fox. Fox looked from one to the other of them with a confused impatience. "What?"

"Fox..." Krystal began hesitantly. "The wars been over for almost 6 years now!"

Fox's mouth opened slightly, frowning in a disbelieving way. "What? That's impossible! Wolf swore to me that..."

"Fox," Krystal said putting a hand on his shoulder. "I need to know, when did yo go to sleep?"

Fox thought for a moment. "I...I...it was just after the war ended. I was having trouble just standing by while Lylat fell to Andross. Wolf convinced me that I couldn't beat Andross the way things were right then. He gave me a drug that would stop me thinking about all the things that were happening, sorta like being asleep. He swore he'd find you and Falco and Katt and the rest of the team and then wake me up! I– Where are we anyway?"

"Sargasso." Krystal replied. "We've been here for almost 3 months."

Fox shook his head disbelievingly. "Wolf, he swore to me that—"

"O'Donnell screwed you over, Fox." Falco said

Krystal tried to look Fox in the face. His emerald eyes were confused and angry and he looked at them both. "What's been happening while I was asleep?"

And so Falco and Krystal outlined the events of the past 6 years as best they could, Krystal explaining about her isolation, and Falco about Star Falco and his marriage to Katt. They outlined Krystal's return to Lylat, and both's capture by Star Wolf, as well as the 3 months they'd been imprisoned here, and his own pitiful existence as Rasper.

Through it all Fox seemed to maintain a cool head, reverting to the rather normal military persona he adopted for combat. At the end of their narrative, Fox sighed and looked at them. "It's a lot to take in." The other 2 nodded in agreement. "I can tell you one piece of good news." Fox said, drawing the attention of Falco and Krystal. "Slippy and Amanda and Lucy are all alive."

Krystal's face became brighter at the news, and she grasped Fox's hand more firmly. "Really?"

Fox nodded. "Really. Wolf told me they were captured by Venom's patrols trying to hide in the foothills on Katina. Andross was holding them on Venom last I heard. Of course my information may be inaccurate now."

Krystal shook her head. This day just kept getting better and better! "No, Fox. That is the best news I've had all day. Aside from you being alive."

Fox sighed again, rubbing his forehead between thumb and forefinger. "I need to talk to Wolf. Give him a piece of my mind!"

"Yes," Krystal nodded understandingly. "We both will. Tomorrow though." Krystal got up from her chair, signaling Katt with her mind that it was time at last. "Tonight, we celebrate our reunion. And there's someone I think wants to meet you."

Krystal opened the door to her room and walked out into the hall for a few seconds. Fox peered after her, but he didn't have long to wait. Within seconds, Krystal was back, followed closely by Katt. The blue vixen was leading a nervous looking kit by the hand. He was about five years of age, and barely came up to Krystal's waist. His fur was sky blue, rather than sapphire like his mother's, and to Fox, it was like looking in a mirror. The kit's emerald eyes met Fox's and for a moment they just looked at each other. Krystal picked the kit up so that the two were now eye level. "Fox, I'd like you to meet our son, Marcus James McCloud."

Fox's eyes were still glued to Marcus' as she said this. _Our son._ He thought amazedly. _My son. _His son. Fox smiled and let out a little laugh. "Hey Marcus."

"Hi, Daddy." Marcus beamed.

Fox felt a surge of pride wash over him at that word. He loved it instantly. This time with no restraint he hopped out of bed and rushed over to his family, enclosing them in a warm embrace. The two parents had tears in their eyes, and Marcus hugged them both around the neck. Fox and Krystal exchanged a long look, then kissed, Their first real kiss in 6 whole years.

**Whoowe! 28 pages! A personal best! I'm really sorry about the sloppy stuff in this chapter! I tried to make it perfect, but writer's block wouldn't let me. So I apologize for posting this chapter first, but I needed to get this done and over with. I will write the 6****th**** chapter soon. But it won't be the first thing I put up. I HAVE to get some 2 Roses written! There's a new poll on my profile please vote. Reviews are encouraged and appreciated. I want to say so much more but exhaustion prevents my memory from functioning. Good night!**


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